Infinite Devotion
by Snapdragon83
Summary: Kurt Weller and Taylor Shaw seemed destined to be together, until a cruel twist of fate left them both brokenhearted. When they reunite years later, will it be the happy ending both have dreamed of or will secrets and misunderstandings keep them forever apart?
1. Prologue

I do not own Blindspot or any of its characters.

* * *

Her best friend was leaving for college in the morning.

The young girl took a seat inside the fort that had been her refuge as far back as she could remember and pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her chin on the rough denim of her jeans as silent tears coursed down her cheeks. She'd known this day was coming for months, had promised herself that she would be nothing but happy for him, but now that the time was almost here, she was failing miserably. They hadn't been apart for more than a week her entire life, and now it would be months before she saw him again.

What scared her more than the long separation was the very real possibility that he would forget all about her. She'd seen how the girls in this town threw themselves at him, and they were downright scarce here compared to where he was going. She was so much younger than he was, what chance did she have of holding her place in his heart against college girls his own age?

"Tee? You in there?" There was no answer from inside the fort, but the young man knew his friend too well to doubt this was where she was holed up. He squeezed his too-tall frame into the child-sized wooden structure and frowned when his eyes adjusted to the dim light enough for him to see the tear tracks on the girl's face. He crawled carefully over to her and draped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close until her head rested on his chest and gently swiping at her tears with his free hand. She'd been putting up a brave front this past week, but he'd seen the sadness in her eyes at the frequent mentions of his imminent departure. He hated leaving her just as much as she was dreading seeing him go, but he had to be the strong one at the moment. This wouldn't be their only parting in the next few years, and his example now would set the tone for the foreseeable future.

They sat in silence for some time. Her sobs slowed, then finally stopped, but she was too embarrassed to draw back and look him in the eye. She had always prided herself on being as tough as any boy, taking even the toughest licks without shedding a tear, and today's waterworks had severely tarnished that image in front of the person she most wanted to impress. "If you tell anyone I cried, I'll never speak to you again," she informed him, knowing even as she spoke that it was an empty threat and that he would know that as well. She could no sooner cut him out of her life than the earth could banish the sun.

That was more like it. His lips twitched as she scooted back several feet, her feisty eyes trained on his for any sign he wasn't taking her seriously. "What happens in the fort stays in the fort," he promised her and was relieved to see a tremulous smile appear on her lips. He shifted to a more comfortable position as his legs began to go numb. "I'm really going to miss you, Tee."

Her insides warmed at his special nickname for her, but her doubts still lingered. "Will you?" she asked softly, her gaze falling to the floor once more. "It's hard to believe you'll give me a second thought once you start hanging out with all those pretty college girls."

"Hey." He gently placed a finger under her chin and tilted her head up until her eyes met his. "No matter how many pretty girls I meet, they can't take your place in my heart, Tee. All my best memories include you, and that's not going to change just because there's a little distance between us. You'll always be my number one girl."

 _You'll always be my number one girl._

"You promise?" she whispered, feeling the first genuine smile she had been able to muster in over a week tugging at her lips, reassured as much by the intensity in his eyes as his actual words. He was too much a guy to show such emotion often, and the fact that he was doing so now made her feel far more treasured than mere words alone could. Even ones as sweet as he had just spoken to her.

He held his arms out to her, and she flung herself into them, wrapping her own tightly around his waist. "I promise, Tee." He rested his cheek against the downy softness of her hair. "I promise."

 _Always._


	2. Chapter One

I do not own Blindspot or any of its characters.

* * *

Taylor Shaw drove back into Clearfield, Pennsylvania 13 years, 8 months, and 27 days after she had left her hometown, vowing never to return. It wasn't from any weakening of that resolve that she was currently passing the city limits sign—even now it was all she could do not to whip a U-turn and get the hell back out of Dodge—but rather her mother's request that she come home for Christmas. Emma Shaw had recently been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and since this was the first thing she had asked of Taylor in the aforementioned time, Taylor had felt honor bound to oblige.

It wasn't such a big request, after all. Come back to her childhood home, catch up with old friends, celebrate Christmas with her mom. Simple, right? All things that grown-up children do regularly, and not the least reason for the knot that had settled in the pit of her stomach. Her mom's cancer was partly to blame, but the root cause . . . that was something else entirely. She knew what it was, of course.

Kurt Weller.

She'd banished her childhood friend to the far recesses of her mind when she left all those years ago, but despite her best efforts, he never seemed to stay there. Hardly surprising, given that she'd fallen in love with him when she was seven years old and never really fallen out of it. Cutting him out of her life was the hardest thing she'd ever done, and in the quiet of night, she still found herself second-guessing that decision more often than she cared to admit. The what-if's and if-only's were a worse hell than any she'd faced on the frontlines of battle.

Flashing blue lights in her rearview mirror interrupted her thoughts before she could go any further down that rabbit hole, and Taylor groaned as she glanced down at her dashboard to see that she was more than a few miles per hour over the speed limit. Had she really thought this day couldn't get any worse?

She pulled over to the shoulder of the road and briefly considered retrieving her badge from the center console to attempt to get out of the ticket before thinking better of it and reaching for the registration in the glove box instead. No one in this town knew she was a federal agent and since this visit, stressful as it was starting out, was the closest thing she'd had to a vacation since she left, she would prefer to be just plain Taylor Shaw. No guns, no bombs, no terrified hostages, just two weeks of uninterrupted peace and quiet. Her employment with the Bureau was on shaky ground anyway.

Her planned apology died on her lips when she rolled down the window and found herself looking up into the very face that had haunted her dreams for over a decade. Although if she'd known how nicely he'd filled out, those dreams would have been much less reminiscent and much more sensual. She wasn't generally a fan of guys with beards, but his stubble was seriously sexy. "Hello, Kurt."

" _Taylor?"_ Kurt Weller rocked back on his heels in disbelief as he found himself looking into a pair of wary green eyes he'd begun to doubt he'd ever see again, struggling to reconcile the stunningly beautiful woman before him with the gangly tomboy he'd known, afraid if he blinked she would vanish. Emma Shaw hadn't mentioned anything about Taylor coming home when he'd dropped in to check on her a few days ago. Although now that he thought about it, her eyes had contained a suspicious glint, which he'd written off as the shock of her cancer diagnosis.

He'd never been happier to be wrong.

Kurt controlled the grin that was threatening to break out on his face with an effort and rearranged his features into a serious expression. "Would you turn off the motor and step out of the vehicle, please, ma'am?"

"What?" Taylor looked at Kurt like he had grown a second head. She'd been speeding, sure, but he had no cause to remove her from her vehicle. "Why?"

Kurt stepped back and opened the door of the SUV. "If you please, ma'am."

If he called her ma'am again, she wouldn't be responsible for her actions. Taylor fumed silently as she yanked her keys from the ignition and complied with Kurt's request. The moment her feet touched the pavement, she was swept up in a hug so tight she thought it might crack a rib. Her own arms automatically wound around his waist, and her head came to rest against his chest as he lifted her off the ground like she was feather light and swung her around. Of all the scenarios that had flitted through her head the past few weeks when she envisioned their upcoming reunion, she hadn't imagined anything like this, and she couldn't contain the startled laugh that bubbled up in her throat.

Taylor's laugh was infectious and Kurt found himself chuckling along with her as he reluctantly ended their embrace. She'd looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders when he first laid eyes on her, and he was relieved to see much of that tension had fallen away. "It's really nice to have you back, Tee." A strand of hair had fallen forward into her face and he couldn't resist brushing it behind her ear. "I just wish it were under better circumstances."

Taylor was silent for a long moment as his words recalled her to reality. "Mom's a fighter. And her doctor is hopeful that the radiation treatments will work." She took a step back, needing to put space between her and Kurt, needing to be close to him once more, needing . . . she didn't even know what. She hadn't been with him five minutes and already she could feel the walls she had spent the last thirteen years building to protect her heart threatening to crumble. Kurt Weller always had been able to get past her defenses like no one other. It was both comforting and terrifying to realize that hadn't changed. Her eyes fell on the badge pinned to his chest. "So . . . you're the sheriff here now?"

"Temporarily." Kurt closed the gap Taylor had put between them and leaned on the SUV next to her. "I actually work in New York City, but Dad has terminal liver cancer, so I moved back here for now to help out. Since I have a degree in criminal justice, I took a job as an under sheriff and when Sheriff Buchman passed away unexpectedly a month ago, the county asked me to step in until another sheriff can be elected."

 _New York City. He lived right in her own backyard. And what was he doing with a degree in criminal justice? He'd been studying to be a teacher._ Taylor's mind was racing to process all this new information, but aloud she simply said, "I'm very sorry to hear that, Kurt. Your dad was always really nice to me." The closest thing she'd ever had to a father, truth be told. God knows her own had never wanted anything to do with her.

"He'd really love to see you. Mom and Sarah too. Why don't you and your mom come over for dinner tonight? Mom always makes enough food to feed an army, and that'll give the two of you all afternoon to visit without having to worry about fixing something to eat." Emma Shaw was only marginally better than his sister in the kitchen, and Taylor had always been too much of a tomboy to have any interest in learning to cook. Judging by how skinny she was, that, at least, hadn't changed.

"I'd like that." Taylor doubted that the Wellers would be as pleased to see her as Kurt thought, but maybe she was wrong. He was being nicer than she had any right to expect; maybe there truly were no hard feelings. Even if there were, she had promised herself that she would do what she could to mend fences while she was here and this was a good first step. She was suddenly recalled to a sense of her surroundings by a car whizzing by. "So am I free to go, or are you going to write me a ticket, or what?"

Kurt's eyes danced as he turned to face Taylor head-on, placing one hand on the SUV by her head, effectively pinning her against the vehicle. "No ticket. I'll let you off with a warning this time. As long as you agree to have dinner with me."

"I thought I just did," she shot back a bit breathlessly, her heart racing at his nearness. _Is he going to kiss me_? she wondered, and didn't know if she was disappointed or relieved when he pushed away from the SUV, once again putting some distance between them.

"No, you agreed to have dinner with my family," Kurt corrected her. "I'm talking about just the two of us going somewhere nice, sharing a meal, and catching up on the last thirteen plus years. I've really missed you, Tee."

Taylor blinked. Was Kurt asking her out on a date? The first two criteria on his list definitely pointed in that direction, but the last one left her in doubt. She wanted desperately to ask, but she wasn't sure she could handle the answer, no matter which way it went. The only thing that was clear to her right now was that she couldn't say no. Not when he was looking at her with that pleading expression in his eyes. It would be like kicking a puppy. "That sounds nice. When do you . . . when do you want to go?"

"How does Friday night sound?" Kurt suggested. "That'll give you a couple days to get settled in, and visit with your mom and anyone else you want to see." He held his breath until she nodded her assent. "Great. Dinner tonight should be around six, so I'll see you then. I'll call my mom and let her know you're coming." And to hold off on the interrogation she and Sarah would be itching to subject Taylor to. If anyone were going to question her, it would be him. "Drive safe. See you soon."

He whistled all the way back to his squad car.


	3. Chapter Two

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Kurt glanced down at the cell phone in his hand as Taylor's SUV disappeared from view, and debated how best to break the news of Taylor's return to his mom before deciding against calling her. This news was best delivered in person. Taylor had been like a second daughter to both his parents, a younger sister to Sarah, and it had hurt them all deeply when she turned her back on them, especially given that none of them had ever known why she had done so.

He wanted those answers as desperately as any of them, more even, but the situation required a finesse that he wasn't sure his family possessed. Emma Shaw desperately needed her daughter here right now, and Taylor had a gun-shy look in her eyes that told him that if she got spooked, she would run away again, and this time it wouldn't be for just over a decade.

It would be for a lifetime.

He headed back to the police station to finish up some paperwork and trade out the squad car for his personal vehicle. Barring a major emergency, he planned to take the rest of the day off, and driving his own car would help him maintain a low enough profile to do so. People inevitably came knocking with all sorts of petty problems when they saw his police cruiser parked in the driveway, and he generally enjoyed helping to solve them, but his family needed his undivided attention today.

He only planned to be at the station twenty minutes or so, but nearly an hour passed before he was able to get away. Sarah's car was in the driveway when he arrived at his parent's house and he didn't know whether to be grateful that he would only have to break the news once or don a bulletproof vest before doing so.

The three of them were just finishing lunch when he walked in, his father and Sarah engaged in a familiar debate over the merits of their favorite respective ball teams. His mom greeted him with a warm smile before the serious expression on his face registered. "Kurt? Why are you home at this time of day? What's going on? What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, Mom." He gave her a reassuring smile as he joined them at the table. "I finished up at the station early, so I decided to swing by. I have some news you'll all want to hear." He hoped.

Three sets of eyes regarded him impatiently as he reached for a brownie, and Sarah grabbed his hand before he could get it off the plate. "Nuh-uh, big brother. You don't get to keep us in suspense. No food for you until you tell us what's going on."

Kurt knew better than to argue with his sister when she had that look in her eyes. "I, uh . . ." He cleared his throat. "I ran into an old friend this morning, and I invited her and her mother to come over for dinner tonight."

Sarah's eyes gleamed. "She? Does this old friend have a name?" It had been far too long since Kurt had shown any interest in a woman, in her opinion. A good-looking guy like her brother should not be living like a monk.

Kurt took a deep breath. _Now or never._ "Taylor Shaw."

The effect of his pronouncement was electric. His mother dropped her fork onto her plate with a loud clatter, her eyes instantly tearing up, and his father reached over to cover her hand with his own, squeezing it tightly, looking as emotional as Kurt had ever seen him.

Sarah gaped at him, her eyes flashing fire. "Taylor Shaw is back in Clearfield? _The_ Taylor Shaw? And you invited her _here_? Have you lost your mind?"

"Sarah—"

"No, Kurt," Sarah interrupted him furiously before he could defend such an asinine decision. "You had no right to do that without talking to all of us first. It may have been your heart she broke, but she cut all of us out of her life, or have you forgotten that? We loved her too, Kurt. Mom and Dad practically raised her, she was over here so much, and she was the little sis—" Her voice cracked and she swiped furiously at the tears trickling down her cheeks. "The little sister I never had. She made us all love her, and then she turned her back on us without a word of explanation, and now you want us to what? Welcome her back with open arms so she can do it all over again? What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking," Kurt said deliberately, "that I need answers. _We_ need answers, and this is the first time in almost fourteen years that we have a shot at getting them. I was thinking that unless and until we get those answers and they're legitimate cause to shun her, she looked like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders and could use a friend or two."

Sarah stared at him for a long moment. "You're still in love with her," she pronounced in a tone of dawning awareness.

His sister was too perceptive for her own good sometimes. Kurt made no attempt to deny it. "Yes."

Sarah leaned back in her chair, all the anger draining from her. "Oh, Kurt. You realize you're just setting yourself up for heartache again, right? Taylor isn't here because she suddenly realized she couldn't live without you; she's here to spend Christmas with her mom because Emma wasn't up to traveling to be with her this year, and when that's over and she goes back to her real life, what then? Have you thought this through at all?"

He'd been thinking of nothing else since setting eyes on Taylor. "Enough to know if I don't at least try, I'll regret it for the rest of my life. Taylor was too young back then to know how I felt about her; whatever else she's done, we can't hold my heartache against her. I'm not asking any of you to pick up where you left off, just to not . . . not push her for answers she's not ready to give. Can you do that for me?"

"Of course we can, dear." His parents had remained quiet until this point, knowing from experience it was best to allow him and Sarah to vent their emotions, but now Maggie Weller spoke up. "Your father and I discussed the possibility of Taylor's return when we learned of Emma's cancer diagnosis and agreed that if it came to pass, she would be welcome here."

"Don't look so surprised," Tom Weller added as Kurt and Sarah exchanged glances. "Taylor's actions hurt us so deeply because we loved her so much, but we were her family as much as she was ours, and when she left, we had each other to lean on to get through it. She had no one. Whatever prompted her actions, the Taylor I knew wouldn't have put herself or us through that without good reason."

Kurt's mouth tightened as his father spoke.

"I hope you're right, Dad." Sarah turned to her brother. "And I hope . . . I really hope things work out the way you want, Kurt. You deserve it. Did she . . . did she tell you anything about where she's been all these years, what she's been up to?" It was entirely possible that Taylor already had a special someone in her life, and even if that wasn't the case, she and Kurt had been apart for almost as many years as they'd shared together. She hoped the grown-up Taylor lived up to her brother's memories of her.

"I didn't really have a chance to ask her, Sarah." He'd had more important things to ask her. Like convincing her to go on a date with him. He'd waited too many years for this chance to waste a second of it.

"I'm sure she'll tell us all about it at dinner tonight," Maggie said briskly. "Speaking of which, I'd really like to make something special for Taylor's homecoming, but I need to pick up a few things. Would you mind driving me to the store, Kurt?"

"What?" he asked distractedly, caught up in his thoughts, before her words registered. "Oh, sure, Mom, no problem." He grabbed his jacket and keys and followed her out the door.

Kurt could feel her eyes on him as he drove and he was relieved she didn't press him to talk. His dad's last words rang in his head. _The Taylor I knew wouldn't have put herself or us through that without a really good reason_. He was right. She wouldn't have, and the nagging suspicion that had taken root when Emma Shaw began refusing to give him any information about her had reared its ugly head again. He and Taylor were going to have to have a candid conversation, and soon.

"You think he did something to her, don't you?" Maggie asked as Kurt pulled into a parking space. He gave her his best blank look, but she wasn't fooled. "I saw the look on your face when Tom said what he did to Sarah. You think your dad molested Taylor."

His mom was too perceptive for her own good sometimes. And for her to have read him so accurately, she had to have wondered the same thing at some point. Kurt scrubbed a hand across his forehead wearily. "I'd be lying if I said the thought hadn't crossed my mind."

It fit. Taylor was practically the poster child for a sexual predator's victim: the only child of a single mother who loved her daughter dearly but who was so focused on providing material advantages that she was physically present far less than Taylor needed and emotionally absent nearly always; a tomboy whose keen intelligence and athletic prowess had made her the envy of her peers, but never quite helped her fit in with them; a lonely girl whose father's abandonment as a toddler had left her doubting the self-worth everyone else fortunate enough to know her could see so clearly. Her involvement with his family had eased much of her loneliness, but he didn't think she'd ever felt she truly belonged. Had his father used his close relationship with her to exploit her need for affection?

If so, it would explain why she had felt the need to cut all ties with them. Many victims were too ashamed to come forward, convinced that they were somehow to blame for what was happening to them, and Taylor's attachment to his family would have complicated her situation exponentially. In order to speak up, not only would she have faced losing the safe haven their home had always provided her and potentially turned the town against them, but given her strained relationship with her mother, the people she would most likely have confided in would have been members of her abuser's immediate family.

Had she chosen to run not only to end the abuse, but to protect them at the expense of herself? Kurt felt sick at the thought. Surely she wouldn't have done that. Surely she had known that they all loved her too much—that _he_ loved her too much—to ever allow her to bear such a burden for them. No matter the personal consequences, there was no doubt in his mind they would have stood by her to see justice done.

He glanced over at his mother. "What about you? Do you think he could have done it?"

Maggie was silent for a long moment. "I wish I could say I was sure he hadn't." She swallowed hard. "About a year after Taylor left, I asked him point blank if he had ever touched her. He denied it, and I believed him, still do, but sometimes . . ." She shrugged helplessly. "I never saw anything that gave me cause for concern, but it's hard not to have doubts when it's the only answer that seems to make sense." Even harder knowing that something like that might have been going on under her roof and she hadn't protected that precious girl.

Kurt turned to face her, taking her hands in his. "You know I'm going to have to ask her, Mom. I'm going to have to ask Taylor, and if she says he did it . . ." He would be spared the task of arresting his own father, thankfully, since the crime would most likely have taken place within the city limits, but in a small town like Clearfield, there would be no escaping the backlash that would descend on his family. "If she says he did it, I'm going to walk her into the police station myself and see to it that she presses charges."

Maggie squeezed his hands tightly. "If she says he did it, I'll walk in there right alongside the two of you. That's a promise."

He sometimes forgot just how remarkable his mother truly was. "I love you, Mom."

"I love you too, Kurt. Now come on," she added in a determinedly lighter tone, wanting to wipe away that anguished expression on his face. "Today's a day for celebration, and time's a wasting. We have a welcome home party to put together. My future daughter-in-law deserves nothing less than the best, after all."

She laughed all the way into the store at Kurt's dumbfounded expression.


	4. Chapter Three

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Whoever said there was no place like home hadn't visited hers, Taylor thought with grim amusement less than ninety minutes after arriving there. She was curled up on the couch facing her mother, desperately racking her brain for another subject to talk about. They had been sitting in silence for nearly ten minutes, and not the pleasant silence between people who are comfortable enough with one another to let it grow between them, but the awkward, unpleasant quiet that stretched between acquaintances who weren't opposed to talking to one another but couldn't find a way to bridge the gap.

The visit had started off well enough. Taylor had brought lunch from her mom's favorite bistro in New York City and the two of them had reminisced about the sights they had taken in there while they ate. Unfortunately, it had all gone downhill from there. Their conversation had ranged from her mom's cancer diagnosis and treatment options _(Let's not spoil Christmas by worrying about that now, Taylor)_ to her work _(I can't really talk about it, Mom; it's classified)_ to her love life, or lack thereof _(You're not getting any younger, Taylor, and I would like to hold my first grandchild before I die.)_

It saddened her that there was such a gulf between the two of them when they were all each other had in the world. She'd known the distance was there, of course, but it had been easy to deny its existence when it was her mom visiting her in one of the big cities she'd resided in for nearly a decade, where a multitude of people and shops and attractions had given them plenty to discuss, and made her mom's infrequent stays feel, if anything, too short.

Now that she was back in Clearfield, Taylor saw clearly just how superficial those occasions had been. Her mother might have been the one to create that gulf between them initially, albeit with the best of intentions, but Taylor had unwittingly rebuffed her every attempt since then to make amends. If she wanted to repair their relationship, she was going to have to make the overture this time.

She decided to throw her mom a bone. "So . . . I got pulled over for speeding on my way into town by the acting sheriff. No ticket, thankfully, but I did have to agree to go out to dinner Friday night to get out of it."

Emma gaped at her daughter. "Are you telling me Kurt Weller asked you out on a date? And you're _going_?"

"He did. And I am," Taylor confirmed. Although she still wasn't sure from his description if it was a date in the strictest sense of the word. "Oh, and I also accepted his invitation to dinner for the two of us at his parents' house tonight. I hope you don't mind."

Mind? It was what she'd been praying for since Taylor had acceded to her request to come home, but she'd never dreamed it would happen this quickly. Her daughter's estrangement from the Wellers had gone on far too long, and she was very much afraid she was to blame for it. "Not at all, sweetie, if that's what you want to do. I'm sure the Wellers will be thrilled to see you."

That was debatable, but for now she would follow her mother's lead and err on the side of optimism. "And you're okay with me going out on a date with Kurt?"

"Of course." Emma was secretly thrilled about it, but she was wise enough not to let it show. If a relationship between her daughter and Kurt Weller was meant to be, it would work out without any interference from her. Her last attempt to intervene in Taylor's life still haunted her and she hadn't yet found the courage to come clean about what she had done. It needed to be said, but she was terrified it would destroy any possibility of a meaningful relationship between them. "Why wouldn't I be? Kurt's a good man. I've always liked him."

"That's . . . not how I remember it," Taylor muttered, picking at an invisible speck of lint on her jeans.

"Look at me, Taylor," Emma requested gently and waited until her daughter reluctantly did so. "I admit, I did my level best to discourage your interest in Kurt, and I said a lot of things in frustration that I've wished so many times I could take back, but not because I disapproved of him. To the contrary, he's one of the finest young men I've ever met, and I don't know a mother alive who wouldn't be thrilled to have him as a prospective son-in-law." Truth be told, given everything he'd been doing for her the past four months, he already felt like hers.

"Then why . . ." Taylor wasn't sure what she wanted to ask. Why try to sabotage the relationship; why not encourage it; or at the very least, why not remain neutral? After all, Kurt had never given any sign that he saw her as anything other than a pesky kid sister. He'd certainly had an impressive succession of girlfriends in high school and college.

 _Especially_ in college. Taylor's brow furrowed at the remembrance.

"Because you were so young, Taylor," Emma said wearily. "You were little more than a baby when you became infatuated with Kurt, and I was terrified you were going to repeat my mistakes. I made your father the center of my world the same way Kurt was yours, even dropped out of college for him, and he walked away from the both of us without a backwards glance." She could forgive him for leaving her, even acknowledge that she was equally to blame for the failure of their relationship, but she would hate him forever for what his absence had done to their daughter.

"Kurt's not my father. If we'd gotten involved, he would've never—"

"I know Kurt is nothing like your father. I know he would have always been there for you, and any children you may have had, whether a romantic relationship worked out between the two of you or not. The problem is not what he would have done, but what you would have lost."

What she had lost was nearly fourteen years with the man she loved. Not that her mother was to blame for that. Taylor frowned. "I don't follow."

"Did you ever get past your daydreams of dating Kurt enough to consider the actual realities of having a relationship with him, Taylor? The five-year age difference between you might be insignificant now, but back then, I don't mind telling you, it was enough to keep me up nights. Kurt, at least, was in college and dating other girls—" albeit at the behest of her and his parents, "—but you . . . you wouldn't give any other guy so much as a second look. You were—you _are_ —so smart, Taylor, that I knew you had an amazing future ahead of you. I wanted you to go on to college, meet other people, and experience life outside of Clearfield before deciding on the person you wanted to spend the rest of your life with. But I'd have had no problem with it being Kurt." In fact, as a closet romantic, she'd been secretly hoping it would be him.

She still was.

Taylor sat in stunned silence for some time after her mom finished speaking. She'd spent years resenting her for her opposition, when all the time all her mom had wanted was for her to develop an identity beyond just that of Kurt Weller's girl. "Wow," she said at last. "If we could've talked like this when I was a teenager, we could've avoided a lot of conflict. We might have even been friends." Although that might be pushing it, given how headstrong her teenage self had been.

Emma smiled through her tears. "I'd like to think it's not too late. Knowing you as I do, I'm willing to bet you didn't bring anything suitable to wear on a date. What do you say we have a girl's day out Friday? Go shopping for the perfect dress, visit this nice spa I've heard of and get massages and facials, have your hair styled." All the things she should have done with Taylor as a teenager. "My treat. We can even invite Kurt's mom and sister if you like."

"No." Taylor saw her mother's face start to fall. "I mean, no, I don't want to invite the Wellers. I'm going to be nervous enough without spending the day with Kurt's family. I'd really like it to be just you and me this time, Mom."

Emma beamed. "Me too." She pulled Taylor into an awkward hug before hopping up. "I, uh . . . I'll go call the spa and make reservations for us. Oh, I can't wait. This is going to be so much fun."

Taylor smiled at her mother's exuberance. Fun was not the word she would use to describe the day her mom had planned, but if it cemented the tentative connection they had forged today, she would gladly endure a thousand such excursions. And hopefully the end result would be well worth it. She stood as well. "While you're doing that, I think I'll go for a jog, clear my head before it's time to get ready for dinner.

Her mother gave a brief wave of acknowledgment as she headed out the door.

It was warmer than usual for this time of year, the crisp air having only a slight bite to it, and Taylor breathed it in for a moment before skirting the house and breaking into a run alongside the creek, in the opposite direction of the Weller's home. The terrain was more rugged than the average jogger would want to take on, but she'd been conditioned to handle far rougher surfaces than this.

She settled into a comfortable pace, covering several miles easily, the peaceful solitude draining much of the tension of the emotionally charged day. Coming home had been both easier and harder than she expected, but, for the moment at least, she was honestly glad she had. Reconnecting with Kurt, making peace with her mother . . . she'd written each off as unlikely, if not impossible, and to have been able to accomplish both in one day was simultaneously rewarding and exhausting. She felt like she'd made it to the top of a roller coaster, only to be faced with a drop that was potentially far more terrifying than she'd expected when she boarded.

Dinner at the Weller's being the drop, of course.

Taylor glanced down at her watch and reluctantly slowed her steps, turning for home to begin getting ready. Maybe she was worrying for nothing. Maybe fate would continue to be kind and tonight would be as pleasant a surprise as the rest of the day had been.

Maybe it was time to stop living every day waiting for the other shoe to drop.

She and Kurt had played in these woods every day as kids, and Taylor smiled as she passed several familiar landmarks, knowing she was getting close to home. She picked up the pace as she rounded the last bend, glancing back as a dog lunged at the chain-link fence she was passing with a loud bark, and ran straight into a solid object that she could have sworn wasn't in her path a moment before.

Kurt had seen Taylor coming at him too late to step out of her way, and he took a step back to brace himself for the impact, trying unsuccessfully to keep them both on their feet. He shifted as they fell, taking the brunt of the impact, and she landed on top of him, too stunned to do anything but stare down at him openmouthed. "That's the second time today you've broken the speed limit, Miss Shaw," he couldn't resist teasing, and grinned as her cheeks turned an adorable shade of pink.

Taylor did her best to look appropriately chastened. "I don't suppose you'd consider letting a girl off again with just a warning, would you, Sheriff Weller?"

"No," he murmured, his gaze locked on hers as they simultaneously became aware of the intimacy of their position. "Clearly, warnings don't work on you, Miss Shaw. I'm going to have to resort to more stringent measures." The temptation to kiss her was almost overwhelming and he could see the same desire reflected in her eyes, but instead he took advantage of her distraction to roll her beneath him in a lightning quick move and began tickling her.

Taylor realized what was about to happen a moment too late to evade Kurt, and in seconds she was writhing on the ground under him, giggling uncontrollably. "Uncle," she finally gasped when she could draw a breath, her sides aching from laughing so hard, her green eyes almost feverishly bright.

Kurt flashed her a crooked grin as he got to his feet and extended a hand to help her up. She had grass stains on her clothes, leaves in her hair, and dirt on her cheekbone, but she had never looked more beautiful to him. He brought his hand up to cup her jaw, gently rubbing at the smudge with his thumb before plucking the leaves from her hair. "All better."

"Really?" Taylor glanced down at herself and froze when she saw the stains on her clothes. " _This_ is what you call all better? I look like I've been . . . that we've been . . ." She couldn't bring herself to finish that sentence, but she could tell by the amusement in Kurt's eyes that he comprehended perfectly. Her mother was going to have a field day with this. _Her mother._ Oh god. A dreadful suspicion crossed her mind. "Kurt?"

"Mmmhmm?" His eyes were still twinkling.

It should be a crime for any guy to have eyes that blue. "How did you know I was back here? My mom told you, didn't she?"

"I dropped by to tell you that Mom said to come on over as soon as you're ready, and she said you'd gone out for a run. I knew you'd wind up here eventually." Kurt motioned in the direction of their old fort. "I used to think you'd live out here if your mom would let you."

"Considering we fought like cats and dogs, I probably would have." And if her mom kept up her matchmaking ways, they would be doing so again. Taylor turned to face Kurt, resting her back against a tree. "I was so busy resenting her for not being more like your mom that I never stopped to consider or appreciate all the sacrifices she _was_ making for me."

"You wanted her to be there for you, Tee. There's nothing wrong with that. Maybe you didn't always choose the best ways to express that, but you were a kid. You had every right to expect your mom to be there for all the milestones in your life." And he knew for a fact that it was one of Emma Shaw's biggest regrets that she had missed many of them. "Hopefully, there will still be plenty of them ahead to share together."

"Yeah . . ." Taylor pushed herself off the tree and resumed walking. "We actually had a nice talk today. We're going to go do . . . girly things on Friday."

Kurt glanced over at her rueful tone. "I take it you're still not a fan of those activities." He'd been hoping from her casual attire that Taylor was still a tomboy, and he was secretly pleased to discover that was the case. She'd always been perfect to him just as she was. "If this is about our date Friday night, we can go somewhere more casual." The last thing he wanted to do was make her uncomfortable.

"I appreciate the offer, but no. Mom's really excited about it, so I'm just going to do my best to enjoy the day. There is one thing you could do for me, though." Taylor turned to face Kurt as they neared the house, cocking her head speculatively, smiling as he narrowed his eyes at her innocent expression. "Since all of this—" she motioned to her soiled clothes, "—is your fault, how about running interference with my mom for me so I can sneak inside and get cleaned up without the third degree?"

"My fault?" Kurt choked back a laugh. "You were the one speeding, Miss Shaw, don't forget, so you can't hold me responsible for the consequences. But I think we can negotiate."

Taylor sighed. She should have known he wouldn't let her off easy. "Okay, fine. What's it gonna cost me?" It wasn't like another dinner date with him would be a hardship. Or any kind of date, really.

"An answer."

She hadn't been expecting that, and she did her best not to flinch. They'd fallen back into their old ways so easily that she'd let her guard down, allowed herself to believe they could carry on as if they had never been apart, that the past could remain just that. She should have known that he wouldn't leave his curiosity unsatisfied for long. "What's the question?"

"No question today." Kurt was silently cursing himself for forcing the issue so soon. He wished he knew how to erase the haunting sadness that had appeared in Taylor's eyes, the sudden tension that lined her shoulders. "Just your promise to give me an honest answer when I ask it, no matter if you think I'll like what you have to say or not."

If he was going to ask her why she had left, which was almost certainly the question foremost on his mind, then he definitely wouldn't like her answer. He might deserve the truth, but in her opinion, no good ever came of dredging up the past. "Kurt—"

"Just think about it, Tee. That's all I ask." He framed her jaw with both hands and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, relieved to see that her expression had lightened when he pulled back. "Give me a few minutes to distract your mom and then sneak in the back door, okay?" He started for the front porch without waiting for her response.

Taylor steeled herself for what she knew she needed to do. "Kurt," she called as he placed his foot on the first step, almost chickening out again as his warm gaze met hers. She never wanted him to look at her any differently than he was now. "I promise."

His answering smile made her decision well worth it.

Now she could only pray that it wouldn't tear them apart forever.


	5. Chapter Four

I do not own Blindspot or any of its characters.

* * *

Happy Valentine's Day to all my loyal readers!

* * *

If he hadn't been walking beside her, Kurt was fairly certain Taylor would have run for the hills as they approached his parents' house. He slipped an arm around her waist as she attempted to slow their pace once again, knowing allowing her to do so would only prolong her agony. "There's no need to be nervous, Tee," he told her softly, wishing her mother had agreed to come with them, rather than electing to come over later on the flimsy pretext of allowing them all time alone to catch up. Once again, in his opinion, Emma Shaw was failing her child.

Taylor glared at him. "I'm _not_ nervous." _Nervous_ didn't even begin to cover what she was feeling at the moment. Terrified was a much better description. Or insane. What had she been thinking to agree to this? She'd cut the Wellers out of her life for almost fourteen years, refused to allow her mom to mention them to her or share information about her with them, without giving any of them the slightest hint as to why, and now she was supposed to what? Waltz right back in there and pick up where she left off? Yeah, insane was definitely the right word.

She was just opening her mouth to tell Kurt that this was a bad idea, plead with him to let her go home when Maggie Weller came flying out the door toward her, arms outstretched, beaming, and for the second time that day Taylor found herself enveloped in a bone-crushing hug.

"Taylor." Maggie drew back after a long moment to frame the young woman's face in her hands. "Let me look at you. I almost didn't believe Kurt at first when he said you were back in town. Oh, you're just as beautiful as I knew you would be." Her eyes were bright with unshed tears as she pulled Taylor back in for another hug. "Welcome home, sweetheart."

"Thank you, Mrs. Weller." Taylor was fighting tears of her own as Kurt's mother ushered her into the house. "It's wonderful to see you again."

"Please, we're both adults now; it's Maggie. Kurt, take Taylor's coat for her and the two of you make yourselves comfortable in the living room. Dinner should be ready in about an hour; I'm just going to go check on it, and then I'll join you. Tom's resting, but he should be down shortly, and Sarah's on her way back from dropping Sawyer off at a sleepover. Would you like something to drink in the meantime?"

Taylor glanced at Kurt before answering. "A bourbon would be great, if you have it, Mrs.—Maggie," she amended hastily at a pointed look from her hostess. Calling her by her first name was going to take some getting used to.

"One bourbon, coming right up. And a martini for you, Kurt," Maggie added before her son could chime in with his usual drink order. "This one's so predictable that you only have to learn everything about him once," she stage-whispered to Taylor as she bustled from the room.

Kurt spluttered in mock affront as Taylor made a valiant effort to hold in her laughter and failed, spurred on by his pretense of outrage, and after a moment, he gave in and joined her, relieved to see that his mother's parting quip had completely eradicated Taylor's unease. No doubt just as she had intended. "You have a beautiful laugh, Tee."

"Thanks." Taylor flushed, as much from the warm look in his eyes as the sincerity in his words and followed him into the living room, taking a seat on the couch. Her cheeks warmed again when he dropped into the space next to her, so close she could feel the heat of his body, smell the heady scent of his cologne. "So, um . . . who's Sawyer?"

"Sawyer is Sarah's son. He's nine." Kurt motioned to the array of family photos over the fireplace mantel across from them. "That's him in the middle picture." Actually in quite a few of them, but the one he had pointed out was the most prominent.

"Sarah's married?" Taylor asked as she studied the image of an adorable curly-headed boy with a shy smile leaning casually against the oak tree in the Weller's backyard.

"No," Kurt said tersely, shifting away from Taylor as he stiffened slightly.

She'd never realized one word could contain such a wealth of information. "I take it Sawyer's father is not on your Christmas card list."

He forced himself to relax, not wanting to ruin the evening before it got started. "Let's just say my sister is much too good for him, and leave it at that." He still couldn't figure out what Sarah had ever seen in the guy.

"What about you?" Taylor asked. "Have you ever been married? Any kids?" She was fairly certain she knew the answer to at least one of those, but she wanted to hear it from him.

Kurt hid his smile at the studiedly casual tone Taylor had always adopted when she asked the questions that mattered most to her. "No kids, but I was married once."

"Really? What happened?"

"She left me. Broke my heart. Got a scholarship to this fancy boarding school and just never came home." Kurt laughed as Taylor smacked him in the shoulder. "What? You were the one who proposed to me, if memory serves. You told me if I married you, you'd clean my room once a week and give me your mom's chocolate chip cookies any time she packed them for your lunch. How could I possibly have refused?"

"I was seven years old!" Taylor protested, laughing along with him at the memory she'd all but forgotten. "And considering all the girls _you_ started dating in high school, you can hardly say that _I_ broke _your_ heart. I was just your tomboy sidekick."

"You were never _just_ anything to me, Tee," Kurt said quietly, earnestly, his laughter vanishing in an instant. "My number one girl, remember?"

Taylor blinked. Was he saying . . .? But then why had he . . .? Her hand automatically came up to finger the infinity necklace he had given her right after uttering that promise, the once shiny metal dull now from years of wear, but still her most prized possession. Kurt had told her that it was a symbol of the infinite possibilities ahead for her in life, a reminder to make the most of the innumerable choices she would be faced with every day. Was it possible he had been hoping those choices would lead her to a life with him?

Kurt couldn't stop his hand from reflexively coming up to cover Taylor's as she pulled the necklace from beneath her top, rubbing his thumb gently over the infinity symbol. His eyes were awed as they met hers. "I can't believe you still have this."

It was as much a part of her ensemble as any article of clothing she wore. "I've had to replace the chain several times, but I never leave home without it." It had actually saved her life and the lives of the agents she worked with several times in the field by causing her to reconsider the calls she was about to make.

"Here are your drinks. Sorry it took me so long to—" Maggie broke off abruptly as Kurt and Taylor swiveled to face her, Taylor's cheeks reddening as Kurt released her hand and jumped back as if he had been scalded. She felt for all the world like a mother who had just caught her teenage son making out with his first girlfriend. She bit back a smile, not wanting to embarrass Taylor further, as she walked over to them, holding out their glasses.

"Thank you, Maggie." Taylor took a generous sip of the bourbon she was handed, grateful for the diversion. As much as she wanted to replay this latest interaction with Kurt, try to sort out how it fit with her version of the events of the past and what it might mean for their future, now was not the time. The present was as much as she could handle at the moment.

And even the present got a great deal more complicated when the front door slammed just as Maggie was settling into one of the chairs across from them. "Hey, Mom, I'm back," she heard Sarah call. Her footsteps neared the living room. "Is there anything I can help you with before the prodigal re—"

"—turns?" Sarah trailed off as she entered the room, catching sight of Taylor, her face going pale at her mother's reproachful look and Kurt's furious glare. She shifted from one foot to the other nervously, wishing she could take back her sarcastic words, trying to figure out how to salvage the situation. "Hi, Taylor. I, uh . . . I didn't mean anything by that. I wasn't expecting you to be here this early."

Clearly. Taylor had instinctively placed a calming hand on Kurt's arm as she felt him tense up, half-rising from the couch, and squeezed gently, silently signaling for him to let her handle this. As close as she and Sarah had been, Kurt's sister had always harbored some resentment over the special bond they shared; she didn't need to restart their relationship by allowing him to fight her battles for her. "Don't worry about it, Sarah. You didn't say anything that wasn't true, and I've been called much worse." She rose and held out a hand. "I'm really happy to see you again."

Sarah bypassed Taylor's outstretched hand and pulled her into a quick hug. "It's nice to see you again too, Taylor." Even nicer to see the genuine happiness on her brother's face as Taylor returned to his side. She glanced over at her mom. "I think I'll go wake Dad up, let him know Taylor's here, so we can all catch up at once."

"No need, honey. I heard you," Tom boomed as he appeared in the doorway behind Sarah, a wide grin splitting his face as he caught sight of Taylor. He strode over to the couch and held out his arms. "Taylor Shaw. Get up here, young lady, and give this old man a hug. It's about time you graced this house with your presence again."

Taylor stood slowly, bracing herself for another of the bear hugs that were becoming commonplace today, and found herself enveloped in the longest embrace yet. She wrapped her arms loosely around his waist as he clung to her, his body shaking with emotion. She tried to speak, but the words stuck in her throat, and she suddenly realized she had no idea what she was going to say anyway.

"Okay, Dad," Kurt interposed when his father showed no signs of letting Taylor go, getting to his feet. "Let's not overwhelm Taylor on her very first day home. Why don't we all take a seat and visit until dinner's ready." He placed his own arm around her waist as his dad reluctantly stepped back, and guided her to the seat he had been occupying at the end of the couch before taking the seat next to her, effectively blockading her.

"Smooth, Kurt," Sarah teased quietly as she sat down next to her brother, their dad moving to the empty chair beside their mom. She leaned around him to see Taylor, unable to wait any longer to ask the question that had been foremost on her mind since learning she was back. "So, Taylor . . . is there a special someone back in . . . where is it you live now?"

"Sarah," Kurt growled.

"It's okay, Kurt." Taylor was amused at Sarah's blatant fishing on behalf of her brother. As protective as Kurt was of his little sister, she sometimes forgot it went both ways. "I actually live in New York City as well." She smiled at his surprised look. "And no, I'm not currently seeing anyone." Except maybe Kurt, but she'd leave it to him to break that news. "My job keeps me pretty busy."

The fact that Taylor put her career ahead of a relationship didn't bode well for Kurt's chances with her. "What kind of work do you do?" Sarah asked.

Taylor took a deep breath. "I'm an FBI agent."

The silence that followed that pronouncement was almost deafening. The four Wellers exchanged speaking glances, but none of them seemed to know what to say.

Sarah recovered first. "You're . . . wow. I have to admit, I did not see that one coming. Not that I'm not sure you're great at it," she hastened to add at Taylor's raised eyebrow. "It's just with all your brains and fancy education, I always figured you'd become a doctor or lawyer or CEO, something that pays a lot better than being a civil servant."

Taylor shrugged. "Money's never been that important to me, and I guess I spent enough time in those fancy classrooms to know that spending my life in an office wouldn't suit me." Not that she wasn't grateful for the opportunities that education had provided her or the sacrifices her mother had made to keep her enrolled in such a prestigious school, her scholarship notwithstanding. The many extracurricular activities she'd chosen to participate in hadn't come cheap. "I prefer to be where the action is."

"Well, I'm sure the FBI knows how lucky it is to have you, dear." Maggie would have given anything to know what Kurt thought of Taylor's revelations—the both of them living in the same city and having careers in law enforcement—but her son remained mute. She suddenly caught sight of the time and jumped to her feet. "Oh my goodness, I'd better go finish getting dinner ready. Sarah, would you mind setting the table? And Kurt, Taylor, if one of you would call Emma and let her know we should be ready to eat in about fifteen minutes, that would be great."

She hustled out and Sarah reluctantly followed her. "Be prepared to catch me up on anything I miss," she told Kurt as she exited.

Kurt resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "As if she'd miss anything when she's in the very next room and has the hearing of a bat."

"I heard that," Sarah called.

Kurt winked at Taylor. "I rest my case."

Taylor couldn't contain her smile as the siblings continued to bicker good-naturedly as she placed the call to her mom, their dad looking on in amused silence, even Maggie occasionally chiming in from the kitchen. She sat back as she ended the call, content to be an onlooker, reveling in the playful banter she had missed for so long. An unfamiliar sensation blossomed in her chest, and it took her a moment to identify what it was.

It was peace.

It was hope.

It was belonging.

It was _home._


	6. Chapter Five

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Maggie hadn't exactly killed the fatted calf, but she'd certainly outdone herself. Taylor's mouth watered at the aroma of the pot roast, a favorite from childhood, as she took a seat in the chair Kurt pulled out for her. He seated himself next to her again, across from her mom and Sarah, leaving his parents to take the seats at the ends of the table, Maggie closest to her.

She glanced at Kurt as they began filling their plates. "So, I have to ask. What made you decide to switch to a degree in criminal justice instead of teaching?" He'd always been so patient with her, teaching had seemed like a perfect career choice. Not that patience wasn't a good trait in a cop as well. She just couldn't imagine what had precipitated the switch.

Sarah smirked. "He got arrested for murdering his girlfriend."

" _What_?" Taylor couldn't believe her ears. There was no way Kurt would so much as raise a hand to a woman, much less kill one. _Especially_ not one he cared enough about to get involved with.

Kurt shot Sarah an irritated glance. "I wasn't arrested. I was taken in for questioning as a person of interest. And Vanessa was _not_ my girlfriend." It was a distinction without a difference as far as his sister was concerned, but it mattered to him. Vanessa's death and his subsequent interrogation had been a catalyst in his career change, but it was far from the primary reason.

That dubious honor belonged to Taylor and the horror he suspected he had been powerless to save her from.

"Right," Sarah said skeptically, not at all swayed by Kurt's oft-repeated argument that he and Vanessa hadn't been romantically involved. "You brought her home to meet us over spring break that year because the two of you were 'just friends.' Which might be remotely believable, if not for the fact that you were hanging all over each other practically the entire time. Back me up here, Taylor. You were still around then, right? You must remember how lovey-dovey the two of them were."

Oh, she remembered all right. All too well. Taylor shrugged as she began eating. "Vaguely. I was pretty caught up in my own drama at the time, if memory serves. It was a long time ago." She resisted the urge to glance at Tom as she spoke. "I'm sorry for your loss, Kurt."

"I appreciate that, Taylor, but contrary to popular belief—" he threw his sister a dark look, "—Vanessa and I really were just friends." And even that might be overstating their relationship. "If I could've foreseen the consequences, I never would have . . ." He trailed off as his eyes met Emma's, hers shimmering with tears.

He had no idea of the consequences. Taylor felt a ball of ice form in the pit of her stomach as his words sank in. "Is that why the police hauled you in for questioning?" she asked, her voice not quite steady. "Because they thought you and Vanessa were . . . in a relationship?"

Kurt smiled ironically. "There was a lot of circumstantial evidence against me, but yeah, the trip here was kind of the icing on the cake. Vanessa was murdered a few days after we got back, and my assertion that we were just casual friends just didn't ring true to them. As the lead detective kept reminding me, guys don't generally bring home girls to meet their families unless they're serious about them."

"Why don't we change this conversation to something a little more pleasant," Maggie suggested just as Taylor was opening her mouth to ask about that circumstantial evidence. She glanced at Emma. "It's wonderful to have Taylor home, isn't it? The last thing I imagined when I woke up this morning was that we would all be sitting down to dinner together again tonight."

"It is wonderful," Emma agreed. "I'd begun to think that the only way Taylor would come back to Clearfield would be in a body bag." Four sets of shocked eyes snapped to hers, and she grimaced. "Sorry, that wasn't exactly the cheerful change of subject you were looking for, was it? How about we talk about Kurt and Taylor's date Friday night instead?"

"Kurt, you didn't mention you'd asked Taylor out!" Maggie exclaimed. "That's wonderful news. Why didn't you tell us?"

"Sorry, Mom," he apologized as he helped himself to a generous serving of mashed potatoes. "I wasn't trying to keep it a secret; it's just been a crazy afternoon."

"No fair holding out on us, you two," Sarah chimed in, eyes shining with an unholy gleam of amusement. "Spill. I want details. Where are you taking her, Kurt?"

Kurt grinned at her, relieved the mood had lightened. "I'm not telling, Miss Nosey, but I can promise you it will be someplace far enough away that you can't send one of your girlfriends to spy on us." Especially since she'd tried to set him up with most of those girlfriends at one time or another. Her gaze shifted to Taylor. "And before you ask, I didn't tell Taylor either, so you'll just have to wait till after the date to get your details."

"Wow," Sarah said to Taylor. "He must have been more charming than I knew he was capable of to convince you to go out with him without knowing where."

Taylor's eyes danced with mischief as she glanced at Kurt, determinedly pushing away the lingering disquiet over what she had learned. Nothing was going to spoil this night for her. "Actually, he gave me a choice between a speeding ticket and a date with him, and I decided the date was the lesser of two evils."

The table erupted in laughter. "Smooth, Kurt," Maggie applauded when she finally managed to draw a full breath, still chuckling.

"That's my boy," Tom interjected, slapping Kurt on the back.

"Yeah, way to go, big brother," Sarah added, grinning from ear to ear. "Blackmailing an FBI agent into going out with you . . . that takes serious stones. You have _way_ more game than I realized."

"In my defense, I didn't know she was a federal agent at the time," Kurt admitted, and a fresh wave of laughter swept the table. He glanced over at Taylor, glad to see the merriment had driven the shadows from her eyes, and reached for her free hand under the table, threading his fingers through hers. "Not," he added softly, "that I would have done anything differently."

Taylor's smile turned shy and the two of them held each other's gaze for a long moment, suddenly oblivious to the fact that they weren't alone. Sarah rolled her eyes, and was just opening her mouth to tell them to get a room already when her mother's stern warning glare stopped her. "Why don't you tell us a little bit about your college experience, Taylor," Maggie requested, as much to get the conversation going again as from curiosity.

"Okay. Well, I attended the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and got a degree in computer science." Everyone continued to look at her like they expected her to say more, but that summed up those four years in a nutshell. When she wasn't in class or attending to her assigned duties, she was either in her room studying or engaging in a variety of extracurricular activities that helped keep her mind off of her homesickness. Off of how much she missed Kurt. She'd probably been the most boring midshipman in the history of the Academy.

"Computer science, huh?" Sarah said. "That doesn't exactly sound like a degree for someone who wants to be in the middle of the action. And don't you have to be pretty connected to get into the Naval Academy?"

Taylor smiled. "It's true, computer geeks aren't generally the most active of people, but I decided in today's world, it was important to have a good grasp of technology, and it comes in very handy in the field on occasion. And yes, you have to be nominated by a member of Congress to get into the Naval Academy. I made friends with the daughter of a senator in high school, and her mother was instrumental in getting me in."

"So you served in the Navy before becoming an FBI agent?" Maggie asked. "That's exciting. Where were you based? Did you get to see a lot of the world?"

"I did." Though her destinations hadn't exactly been tourist attractions. Most of them she would prefer to forget. Some of them still haunted her dreams. All of them were classified. "I never did a tour of duty aboard a ship, but I did work from them on occasion. Because of my language skills, I started out in Naval Intelligence in Hawaii and eventually transferred to the Naval Special Warfare Command in San Diego."

Maggie's brow furrowed. "Special Warfare? I didn't think there were any female Navy SEALs."

"There aren't as of yet, but I did receive a lot of the same training they do." She'd even deployed with them on occasion in a support capacity when a woman's presence had been critical to the mission. "I can't really talk about what I did there, but Special Warfare covers a lot more than just the SEAL teams."

"So you're, like, a serious badass," Sarah surmised.

Taylor put down her fork as she swallowed her last bite. "I don't know if I would go that far, but yes, I can handle myself."

"What made you decide to leave the Navy and join the FBI?" Tom asked.

"I wanted to be closer to Mom, and . . . I don't know, I guess, I was just ready for a change. I'd always planned to pursue a career in law enforcement at some point, and the FBI seemed like the best match for my skillset. After I graduated from Quantico, I was assigned to the New York office, and I've been there ever since."

"Great. Now that we've gotten caught up on all the boring, career-related stuff, how about filling us in on the more personal details?" Sarah requested. "You know, hot guys in uniform you've dated, hearts you've broken, stuff like that."

"That'll be a short conversation," Emma said dryly. "My daughter's a workaholic. I don't think she's gone out on more than three dates with the same guy ever."

Taylor blushed as all eyes trained on her, wishing Sarah would drop the subject of her love life. She understood her need to vet the woman her brother was interested in, especially given the disappearing act she had pulled, but it was embarrassing to admit that she was almost thirty years old and had yet to form one serious relationship.

Maggie took note of the discomfort in Taylor's face and changed the subject once more. "Taylor, would you like some more to eat, or are you ready for dessert? I whipped up a chocolate pie just for you."

If she ate much more, she was going to burst, but there was no way she could resist Maggie's chocolate pie. "Dessert sounds wonderful. I'll help you clear the table." She jumped to her feet and started picking up the empty plates before Maggie could protest that she was a guest.

"Don't mind them, dear," Maggie said as she followed Taylor into the kitchen and placed the dirty dishes in the sink. She retrieved the pie from the refrigerator as Taylor got out some clean plates to put it on. "Sarah isn't quite sure what to make of your return yet, but she still loves you. They both do, and they mean well. Just give it time."

"Thanks, Maggie." Taylor leaned against the counter and watched the older woman cut the pie. "I know that, I do, but I just . . . I don't know how to do this."

Maggie looked up in concern at hearing the anxiety in Taylor's voice. "There's no roadmap for navigating our way back to the relationship we had, Taylor. We just have to be patient with one another and feel our way through it as best we can."

"No, I get that, but that's not what I meant. What I mean is, am I crazy for agreeing to date Kurt right now? Mom's right that I don't have the greatest track record with relationships, and it's going to be difficult enough for all of us to find our footing again without that." Not to mention that if it didn't work out, then trying to bridge the gulf between them would most likely have been pointless anyway.

She sighed as she met Maggie's startled gaze. "You're probably not the best person to ask about this, but Mom's . . . well, you know." She and her mother had made a huge step forward today, but her mom wanted her happily settled and producing grandbabies sooner rather than later, given her own uncertain future; she wasn't exactly an impartial observer. Neither was Kurt's mother, of course, but . . . "I don't have anyone else I can talk to."

"Actually . . ." Maggie said slowly as she slid a spatula under the first piece of pie and placed it on a plate, "I think you should talk to Kurt about this, Taylor. I think you'll find that his thoughts on the matter may reassure you more than anything I could say, but if you still need to talk, my door is always open." She gave Taylor's shoulder a gentle squeeze as she finished dishing the pie. "And don't be afraid to trust your heart."

 _Don't be afraid to trust your heart._

Maggie's words played on a repeating loop in her head throughout the remainder of the evening, as they returned to the living room after finishing dinner and cleaning up, Kurt and Sarah keeping her in stitches as they recounted increasingly outrageous stories from their college days, so different from her own structured existence at the Naval Academy. She curled up on the couch, content to observe, choosing to ignore her mom's smirk when Kurt reached for her hand and interlaced their fingers again.

It was after nine o'clock when her mother finally pleaded exhaustion and the two of them excused themselves, Kurt graciously walking them home. "I'll, uh . . . I'll just give you two some privacy," Emma said as she glanced from one to the other. "Goodnight, Kurt. I'll see you in the morning." She slipped inside before either of them could respond.

"When did my mother become the president of the Kurt Weller fan club?" Taylor wondered aloud, half amused, half exasperated. "And what did she mean about seeing you in the morning?"

"Well," Kurt said, drawing out the word as he slipped an arm around Taylor's waist and drew her down to sit on the stoop beside him, "your mom and I got to talking while you were getting a shower before dinner and we decided that since there's only a week left until Christmas and you've been gone for so many of them, we're each going to give you a present every day until then. I thought I'd drop by tomorrow morning to give you the first one, if that's okay with you."

Her mother had spent every one of those Christmases with her, but Taylor wasn't about to argue their logic. The night air was growing chilly and she snuggled closer to Kurt, smiling when he tucked her against his chest and rested his chin on her head. "I don't get one today?"

Kurt laughed at her wheedling tone. It was classic Taylor, the first hint he'd seen of the little girl he'd known in the grown woman before him. She loved her presents and she never had been patient about waiting for them. "I didn't have time to go get one, but I suppose I could offer you an exclusive membership in my fan club," he teased.

"Yeah?" Taylor played along, pretending to consider his offer. "What's included in this exclusive membership?"

"Hmm." Clearly he should have thought this through. "Access to all my phone numbers—home, work, and personal cell—so you can reach me any time you need to talk."

She could get every one of those numbers with one phone call to her office, but it was sweet of him to offer. "That's a good start. What else?"

"Date nights at least once a week, and home-cooked meals as often as our schedules permit."

Taylor leaned back so she could see his face. "You can cook?"

Kurt shrugged. "I'm no gourmet chef, but I've never had any complaints."

She bet. "Getting warmer. What else?"

Man, she was a tough sell. "This," Kurt whispered as he gave into the impulse he'd been fighting all day and leaned down to press his lips to hers. He kept the kiss soft, gentle, sweet, pulling back far sooner than he would have liked, cupping her jaw as her eyes blinked open. He smiled down at her. "Interested now?"

"What?" Taylor felt like she was floating on air and struggled to focus. She had been fantasizing about that kiss for as long as she could remember, but none of her daydreams had come close to the reality. She smiled back at Kurt. "As long as that's an everyday occurrence and this exclusive membership is limited to one, you've got yourself a new fan."

"Deal." Kurt got to his feet and extended a hand to help Taylor help, reluctant to end the evening, but knowing morning would be here before he knew it. He pulled her in for another lingering kiss to seal their bargain. "I'd better say goodnight now. Sweet dreams, Miss Shaw."

"Goodnight, Kurt." Taylor stood in the doorway, her hand to her lips, and watched until he disappeared from sight.

She had a feeling sleep would be a long time coming tonight.


	7. Chapter Six

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Contrary to her expectations, Taylor drifted off to sleep the moment her head hit the pillow, the stress of the day taking its toll, and the memory of Kurt's kiss lulled her into a more restful night than she'd experienced in years.

She awakened with a smile still on her lips and blinked in confusion as the smell of coffee and pancakes assailed her nose. Growing up, the only thing her mother had ever been able to cook without burning was her chocolate chip cookies; Martha Stewart she was not.

She must have run to McDonald's, Taylor decided as she swung out of bed and followed her nose to the kitchen, eyes still only half open. "Mom, you should have waited till I got up. I'd have been happy to—" She broke off abruptly as she caught sight of the cook.

Kurt was standing at the stove flipping pancakes when Taylor walked in and he felt like he'd had the wind knocked out of him as he caught sight of her. She was dressed in a well-worn Navy tank top and a pair of barely-there shorts, her hair tousled, and he found the whole effect so adorable that it was all he could do not to go to her and kiss her senseless. Their eyes met and he took a quick step forward before recalling Emma's presence. "Morning, Tee," he greeted, his voice gruffer than usual as he turned back to the stove.

"Morning, Kurt." Taylor yawned as she fixed herself a cup of coffee and took a seat at the kitchen table. "When you said you were going to be dropping by this morning, I didn't realize you meant at the crack of dawn."

Kurt flashed her a crooked grin. "I did promise you home-cooked meals as often as possible." And the view more than compensated him for the effort.

"I asked Kurt to come by before work," Emma said as she sat down across from Taylor. "I, uh . . . I have something to tell you, and I thought he should be here for it."

Taylor's smile faded at her mom's solemn tone, and she glanced up at Kurt as he set the platter of pancakes on the table in front of her, not at all reassured to see his own had vanished as well. "What's going on?"

Kurt rubbed Taylor's shoulder gently as he placed some pancakes on her plate. "Relax, Tee. It's nothing that won't keep for a few more minutes. Let's just have a nice breakfast together, okay?" He took the seat between her and her mother at the end of the table, and waited for Emma to serve herself before filling his own plate. "I'm all out of blueberries today, but I'll make sure to get some before I make pancakes again."

"That sounds nice," Taylor murmured as she took her first bite. Kurt was indeed an excellent cook, but it could have been sawdust for all she cared. She ate mechanically, doing her best to take part in the banter between Kurt and her mother, but feeling her anxiety rising with every passing minute. Was her mom sicker than she was letting on? Could that be why she had asked Kurt to be here, to give her daughter a shoulder to cry on when she broke the news that she was dying?

Had she finally found the courage to come home only to lose the person she had summoned it for?

The meal seemed to drag on forever. Taylor took a few more bites before giving up on any pretense of eating and simply pushing the food around her plate, relieved when Kurt rose to clear the dirty dishes out of their way. She took a fortifying sip of coffee as he resumed his seat, gripping the mug so tightly her knuckles turned white. "What's going on, Mom?" she asked again.

Emma took a deep breath. "So, I know Kurt told you we've decided to give you a present every day between now and Christmas, and my gift today is going to be honesty. I, uh . . . I'm the reason Kurt brought Vanessa here," she blurted out before she could lose her nerve.

Kurt's former . . . whatever? _That's_ what this was about? Taylor couldn't contain the startled laugh that burst from her. Her mother and Kurt exchanged concerned looks, clearly not expecting that reaction, and she bit her lip to keep from laughing again. "Is that all?" she asked when she finally trusted herself to speak. "Sorry, I don't mean to trivialize this, it's just . . . I thought you were going to tell me you only had weeks to live or something." She took a deep breath as her mother's words finally sank in. "Wait, what? _Why_?"

"For the same reason I tried to discourage your interest in him at that age," Emma admitted quietly. "To try to ensure you had the brightest future possible. You'd been begging me to let you leave boarding school and finish high school here, and I knew that was because Kurt only had a year of college left. I was afraid when I said no again, you'd take it upon yourself to get kicked out in order to get your way, so I called Kurt and I . . . I guilt-tripped him into going along with my plan. He wasn't happy about it, but I finally convinced him it was for your own good."

Taylor looked at Kurt. "So, Vanessa was your . . . what, exactly? Was it all just an act, or was this a 'friends with benefits' situation? Because I have to say, the way she was draped all over you like a clingy octopus, the two of you looked pretty convincing."

The corners of Kurt's mouth tilted up. "That's pretty descriptive for someone who said last night she only vaguely remembered the girl."

 _Busted._ Taylor frowned at him. "I may have a little better memory than I let on," she allowed with as much dignity as she could muster. "And you didn't answer the question."

"Vanessa and I were not sleeping together," Kurt said emphatically. "I honestly didn't even know her all that well. We had several classes together, and she was in one of my study groups. I wasn't seeing anyone at the time your mother called, but I recalled her mentioning several times wanting to get out of town over spring break—she sounded almost desperate—so it seemed like a win-win for both of us." Kurt met Taylor's gaze squarely as he spoke.

"And you never slept with her? Not even once?"

Kurt's eyes narrowed as he searched Taylor's face, softening when he recognized the laser-like cop focus there, realizing she wasn't doubting him, that she had a reason for asking. Hopefully she would share that reason once she put together the pieces to whatever it was she was puzzling out. "No. Not even once. Vanessa made it clear she would be open to that, but I didn't want any part of it. I was upfront with her from the start about my motives for inviting her, so she knew how I felt about you."

"How you . . . felt about me," Taylor repeated slowly. "And how was that, exactly? Because up until last night, I would have sworn that your feelings were entirely platonic, but now I'm confused. You certainly never gave me any indication that you ever saw me in a romantic light."

Emma saw Kurt struggling to formulate a response and intervened. "Oh, sweetie, he never really saw anyone _but_ you. He sat in that very chair just before he left for college and told me he was going to marry you someday." She paused as Taylor's eyes flew to Kurt's briefly before looking down at her hands. "I've wanted to tell you that so many times over the years, but I wasn't sure if you'd want to hear it." Mostly, she'd been afraid her daughter would follow through on her threat to cut off communication between them if she ever brought up any of the Wellers again.

Taylor struggled to speak past the lump in her throat. "Did . . . did your parents know about this? Sarah?" She glanced from Kurt to her mother, seeing the truth reflected in their eyes. "So everyone knew how you felt but the person you actually had feelings for. Wow. _Wow_."

Kurt reached over and covered Taylor's hands with his own, rubbing his thumb gently over her knuckles. "The last time I saw you, you weren't quite sixteen yet, Tee. Your mom and I didn't see eye to eye on a lot of things, but we both agreed that regardless of how you felt about me then, you needed time to grow up, experience life, before you made such an important decision. I was determined to give you that."

"I'm not angry," Taylor hastened to reassure the two of them. "It's just . . . a lot to take in, that's all."

Kurt nodded. "I think I can help with that. Why don't you go get dressed while your mom and I clean up, and I'll take you to my present for the day."

Taylor blushed as she glanced down, realizing for the first time that she was still wearing her very skimpy pajamas. "Right. Good idea. I, uh . . . I'll just be a few minutes." She jumped up and fled up the stairs without a backwards glance.

Once in her bedroom, she closed the door and leaned against it, shaking with emotion. She took a deep breath to try to regain her composure. Kurt had just unknowingly set every belief she had about her past—about _their_ past—on its head, and the unfairness of it all made her want to cry, to scream, to punch something. Or someone.

Knowing if she allowed herself to dwell on the morning's revelations right now, she might very well do just that, Taylor busied herself with getting ready to face the day. She traded her pajamas for her favorite pair of jeans and a warm sweater, ran a comb through her hair, and brushed her teeth. She was at least outwardly calm by the time she descended the stairs again.

Kurt was waiting for her by the door and he draped her jacket over her shoulders before taking her hand and leading her out into the backyard. She glanced up at him as he slowed his steps, confused, not seeing anything that resembled a present, and he smiled as he pulled a black cloth from his pocket. "Can I trust you to close your eyes and not peek, or do I need to blindfold you?"

Taylor tilted her head as she considered her options. She had never been good about walking into a situation blind. Or in this case, blind _folded_. "Does it count as peeking if I trip and have to open my eyes to keep my balance?"

Kurt chuckled as he spun her into him and pulled the blindfold over her eyes, tying it securely behind her head. "Afraid not, Miss Shaw. But I promise not to let you fall."

"I know you won't. Although," she added thoughtfully as he slipped an arm around her waist and began guiding them toward a destination only he could see, "I feel like I probably should have made you take me out at least once before I let you do this."

"You could consider it advance credit for tomorrow night's date," Kurt murmured.

Taylor shivered as his hot breath fanned her ear. "If I do that, will you give me a clue where we're going?"

Kurt drew to a stop and turned her to face him. "I'll do you one better; I'll show you. We're here." He gently removed the blindfold and drew her chin up to kiss her. "Now it's a good morning," he said when he drew back and turned her around before she could open her eyes so that she was facing her present, pulling her back into him until her head rested against his shoulder.

Taylor's breath caught in her throat. They were standing in the clearing where their old fort used to be, but in place of the ramshackle structure of her childhood was a two-story masterpiece of a building. She walked forward slowly, hardly able to believe what she was seeing.

The new fort was set against the tree line, just as the old one had been, but it was built on a larger scale than a child would need, clearly designed for adults to be able to enter comfortably as well. The lower level was constructed of rough-hewn logs, fitted together so tightly that no wind could possibly get through. The entrance was a drawbridge, which was currently down, allowing her to see a ladder against the far wall leading to the second story.

The upper floor had several windows on each of the three sides that a person could approach from, ensuring that no one could sneak up on the building's occupants. Unlike the lower level, it was constructed of polished redwood, giving the building a simple elegance that wasn't just visually appealing but downright homey.

"You built this," Taylor said quietly. "For me."

It wasn't a question, but Kurt answered anyway. "Yeah, I did. I worked construction a couple summers in college, and I met an architect who drew up the plans for me. It was going to be your 17th birthday present. You hadn't been home in a while, and I thought maybe that was because you and your mom were fighting, so I figured if you had your own space to cool off in when you needed to, you might start coming home again."

That explained why he'd called her school so often in that time frame. He'd been trying to help in the only way he knew how, and she'd rejected every one of his overtures. He'd never done anything but love her, and she'd brought him nothing but pain. She couldn't imagine what he still saw in her, what he had apparently always seen in her.

"Kurt." Taylor forced herself to meet his eyes, almost undone by the love shining there. "I'm sorry. I never should've . . . I'm so, so sorry."

Kurt pulled her into a tight embrace. "My dad said something interesting before you came over for dinner last night." Taylor stiffened slightly, and he rubbed her back lightly until she relaxed before going on. "He said you wouldn't have left, you wouldn't have cut yourself off from all of us, without good reason. I know you well enough to know he's right—I've always known that, Tee—so in my book you have nothing to be sorry for. _Nothing_. Okay?"

"Okay," she whispered, resting her head against his chest, the solid rhythm of his heartbeat calming her. "Thank you for this, Kurt. It's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me." Maybe one day she would be able to give him something equally special in return.

"You're very welcome." They stood in silence like that for some time before Kurt reluctantly pulled back. "I've got to get to work, but I thought this would be a nice, quiet place for you to think. It's fully furnished, so you'll be comfortable." He pressed a quick kiss to her forehead and fished his business card out of his pocket. "Here are those phone numbers I promised you. Call me anytime if you need to talk, all right?"

"I will," Taylor promised, torn between sadness at watching him leave and an almost childish excitement to explore the refuge he had built her. She waited until he had disappeared from sight before ducking inside the fort.

There was no furniture on the lower level, and she quickly made her way up the ladder to the second story. A handcrafted breakfast nook in the far left corner immediately caught her eye, but it was the bed against the wall to her right that stunned her into immobility as she popped her head through the hole in the floor. Kurt had repurposed the wood from their old fort into a bedframe, the board where they had carved their initials after their childhood "wedding" the centerpiece of the headboard.

Taylor climbed the rest of the way up and walked over it, tracing the letters almost reverently. The bed was fully made up, and she took a seat on it, running a hand over the soft woolen blanket as she studied her surroundings in greater detail, wondering how on earth Kurt had gotten the furniture inside or if it had been crafted right here. A sticky note on the breakfast nook table caught her eye and she walked over to it. _Tee: Check out the bench seats. I think you'll like what you find. —Kurt_

She opened the first one, slightly disappointed to see that it contained mostly functional items—extra blankets, flashlights, an air pump for the mattress—until she noticed the assortment of junk food nestled beside it. Since she hadn't eaten much of her breakfast, she grabbed a couple of her favorite old treats before moving on to the second bench. Its contents brought tears to her eyes. Kurt really had outdone himself, filling it with a variety of top-notch art supplies and sketch pads, as well as quite a few of the classic romance novels he had always teased her about getting so emotional over.

Every last item in this place had clearly been chosen with care and proclaimed louder than words ever could just how deeply he cared for her. She couldn't imagine what he had seen in her to inspire such devotion, but witnessing the evidence of that commitment made it all the more difficult to realize she had likely been duped into hurting him, into denying them the future they had clearly both wanted.

But there was still one piece of the puzzle she was missing, Taylor realized as she took a seat at the bench and allowed her mind to drift back over the conversations of the past twenty-four hours. Taylor pulled her cellphone and Kurt's business card out of her pocket, programming his numbers into her contact list before scrolling down to the one person she knew who could help her. "Patterson? It's Taylor. I need a favor . . ."


	8. Chapter Seven

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

She hadn't been this nervous before her first combat assignment.

Taylor took a deep breath as her mother put the finishing touches on her makeup, doing her best not to fidget as a glance at the clock confirmed that Kurt would be here any minute.

Their girls' day had been surprisingly fun, despite her mom rousting her from bed far earlier than she would have liked. Fortunately, they had found the perfect dress at the third store they visited, so she had been spared the extensive shopping spree she'd been dreading. The emerald green gown highlighted her eyes and showed off her figure to perfection. She could count on one hand the number of times she'd looked forward to dressing up, but she couldn't wait to see Kurt's reaction when he saw her in it.

Emma turned Taylor toward the mirror. "All done. What do you think?"

Taylor gazed at herself in the mirror, hardly able to believe the reflection staring back was her. "Wow. You're a miracle worker, Mom." And the diamond-encrusted infinity necklace Kurt had dropped off for her this morning, an upgrade to the one he had gifted her with years ago, was the perfect complement to the dress.

"Hardly." Emma smoothed a stray hair behind Taylor's ear. "I had good material to work with; I just enhanced it a bit." She stepped back as the doorbell rang. "I'll get that. You come down whenever you're ready."

Taylor caught her hand before she could exit the room. "Thanks, Mom. For everything. I had a good time today." She kissed her on the cheek.

Emma gave her hand a squeeze. "Me too, honey." Hopefully it would be the first of many such days. She gave Taylor a quick hug and headed downstairs to answer the door. "Hello, Kurt. Come in, come in. Taylor will be down shortly. How was work today? All quiet, I hope."

"Yeah, it was good. How was your day? Did the two of you have a good time doing your . . . girly things?"

Emma laughed. "It went better than I expected. I was a little considered for the massage therapist at the spa, but once Taylor got over her discomfort at letting a total stranger put his hands on her, she really enjoyed it."

"Telling tales on me, Mom?" Taylor asked as she began to descend the stairs. "Don't believe a word of it, Kurt. I was a perfect angel."

Kurt sucked in a breath as he looked up and caught sight of her. He walked to the foot of the stairs and held out his arm. "I'm going to suspend my disbelief and just tell you that you certainly look like an angel."

"In that case, I'll overlook your lack of faith in me and just take the compliment," Taylor retorted as she slipped her hand through his arm. "You're looking pretty good yourself." She had expected him to wear a nice suit, but he had upped the game with that tailored tux.

Emma snorted. "You two are adorable. Now get out of here, the night's a-wasting. Just make sure you have her back by, oh say, noon tomorrow."

Kurt laughed as he pulled Taylor's coat off her arm and held it out for her to slip into. "Goodnight, Emma."

"I'm beginning to think I've underestimated just how much my mother wants grandchildren," Taylor commented as he opened the car door for her and she slid inside.

Kurt glanced over at her as he slid behind the wheel. "I think what matters in that case is what _you_ want, Tee."

"I mean . . ." She paused to collect her thoughts. "I've never really thought a whole lot about it, because I could never see a future with any of the guys I dated, but I guess I just always assumed if I _were_ to get serious about anyone, we would have at least a couple years with just the two of us, you know. Find our footing before we added a baby to the mix. But now Mom may not have that long, and I feel guilty that I haven't settled down, because I can't imagine her not being there to share that, but . . ." She shrugged helplessly.

Kurt didn't know what to say. He reached over and covered her hand with his own, squeezing gently to offer what comfort he could. It wasn't a problem with any easy answer.

Taylor turned to face him. "Has she said anything about her health to you, Kurt? Because I've tried to talk to her about it several times, but she just keeps refusing to discuss it until after the holidays. I can't seem to make her understand that the not knowing is worse for me."

"I'm sorry, Tee. She told me when she was diagnosed, but she hasn't given me any specifics. I was stunned to hear it, honestly. I've been over here quite a bit since I came back and I never saw the slightest hint that anything was wrong with her."

"I figured as much." Taylor sighed. "Sorry, this isn't exactly great first-date conversation."

"We're not exactly a typical first-date couple," Kurt pointed out. "Relax, Tee. This is exactly the kind of conversation I was hoping we'd have. We don't need to spend the evening making superficial chit-chat that neither one of us cares about; we're not strangers, and we've already seen one another at our worst and managed to stay friends. I want us to be open with one another, to talk about the things that matter and are bothering us. I think we have to be honest with one another no matter what if we're going to make this relationship work."

He hadn't come right out and said that he wanted there to be no more secrets between them, but it was clearly implied. Taylor swallowed hard, remembering Maggie's advice. _Talk to him_. "I'll try, but this whole thing scares me a little bit," she said quietly. "I don't have that many people I'm close to, and I'm afraid if our relationship doesn't work out, I'll lose your friendship as well."

Kurt tightened his grip on Taylor's hand. "Then let's make that the first thing we agree on as a couple. No matter what, if the relationship falls apart, we'll do whatever it takes to remain friends. Deal?"

"Deal," Taylor agreed fervently, feeling a huge weight lift off her shoulders. She cast around for a subject to lighten the mood. "So, um . . . did Sarah ever figure out where you're taking me?"

Kurt grinned. "I may have let it slip to Sawyer that I was taking you to the country club in DuBois. I made him swear not to tell anyone, of course, but if I know my nephew, he'll brag to his mom that he knows, and she'll bribe it out of him."

Taylor smiled in return. "Where are we actually going?" Nowhere in Clearfield, that was clear from the route they were taking, but DuBois was in the opposite direction. She would love to see Sarah's face when she found out she'd been had.

"I made reservations at a restaurant called Zola in State College that I overheard one of my officers mention." It was about an hour away, but the drive seemed to fly by as they began to discuss their favorite haunts in New York. It turned out that they actually liked several of the same chains, although they frequented different locations.

"So what kind of work do you do in New York?" Taylor asked once they had been seated and the waiter had taken their orders. "Are you NYPD or . . .?"

"I'm a private investigator, actually." Kurt smiled at her look of surprise as he took a sip of his wine. "Self-employed. I like the freedom to choose my own cases and set my own hours. I specialize in finding missing kids, usually runaways the cops don't have the manpower to track. Some of their stories will really break your heart." He'd seen a little bit of Taylor in every one he found—more in the ones he'd been too late to save.

"Yes, they will." Taylor had run up on a few of those kids in her years with the FBI; the look in their eyes had haunted her dreams more than once. No child should ever look that jaded. "So you found a way to work with kids after all. Good for you. Are you a one-man operation or do you have partners?"

"No partners, but I do have a few associates who take on infidelity cases and investigative work for law firms. Those are the cases that really pay the bills. I also have a few research assistants, mostly college kids on an internship, and one very overbearing secretary—excuse me, administrative assistant—who's been nagging me to hire someone to lighten my workload. I don't suppose you'd be interested in taking on the job?" Kurt teased.

Taylor didn't laugh. "I might be."

Kurt's smile faded as he realized she was serious. "Are you thinking of leaving the FBI?"

"I don't know. Maybe. Being a cop is tough enough on an established relationship, and my job is more high risk than most. It tends to demand a hundred and ten percent of me, and I don't see a way to balance that and make this work between us."

Kurt reached a hand across the table and clasped hers, touched that Taylor was putting this kind of thought into their future. "Obviously I'm not crazy about you being in that kind of danger, Tee—" in fact it would kill him if anything happened to her, "—but I'm willing to try to figure it out if that's what you want. As much as I would love for you to come work with me, I would never ask you to choose between me and a job you love."

"No, it's . . . it's not just that, Kurt. I know you wouldn't and I appreciate that, but I've actually been thinking about this for a while now. I had a close call a few weeks ago when a hostage situation went bad, and the FBI psychologist recommended that I take time off to deal with that, as well as some . . . some other issues from my past." Taylor had a feeling that had her mother's request not necessitated her return to Clearfield, Dr. Borden would have personally escorted her back here. "So I'd already been wondering if going back was the right thing for me."

"How close a call are we talking?" Kurt asked, struggling to keep his voice steady, suddenly recalling how frantic Emma had been when he'd dropped in on her one afternoon about three weeks ago. All he'd been able to get her to say was that a dear friend had been seriously injured, but that explanation had never set right with him. All her closest friends resided in Clearfield and if any of them had been badly hurt, as sheriff he would have at least heard about it. She'd shut down when he'd tried to question her further, telling him more clearly than words ever could that it had to do with Taylor. "What do you do for the FBI, exactly?"

"I work in the Critical Incident Response Group, which handles everything from missing person's cases to terrorist threats. I'm also a trained hostage negotiator, but I generally only get called in on those situations when the hostage takers only speak a foreign language in which I'm fluent." Although the one three weeks ago had been an exception to that rule.

"As for how close a call it was . . ." Taylor absently rubbed a hand over her upper arm where a bullet had grazed as the waiter approached with their appetizers, waiting until he had served them and was out of earshot before continuing. "A few inches to the left and I wouldn't be sitting here having dinner with you now," she admitted. "I dove across a hostage in the line of fire as the SWAT team stormed the building. One of the hostage takers was about to shoot her and I caught the bullet instead."

Kurt knew enough of police procedure to know she hadn't been wearing a bulletproof vest. A hostage negotiator's job was to put the bad guys at ease as much as possible, so they avoided looking like cops. "Was the hostage okay?"

"The one I tackled was fine." Unspoken but clearly understood was the fact that not all of the others were. They rarely were when a tactical response was required to resolve the situation, but never before had she been mere feet from them when they died. Taylor gave Kurt a weak smile as she bit into a crab cake, determined not to let the images of those two dead hostages ruin a night she'd been dreaming of forever. "Mmm. These are delicious. Have you been here before?"

Kurt was relieved at the lighter turn to the conversation. "No. I haven't dated much since I've been back here, and this place sounded like somewhere a guy should only take a girl he really liked, not a blind date his sister insisted on setting him up with."

Taylor couldn't help but laugh at the mental image that evoked. "Been on many of those, have you?"

"Never more than one with the same lady," Kurt said ruefully. "My sister's taste in girlfriends is not much better than her taste in men. Either that, or I'm too choosy."

Taylor blushed at the look he gave her. "So, um . . . how long have you been back in Clearfield?"

"Almost five months." Kurt went silent as the waiter returned with their entrees, removing the empty appetizer plate and ensuring that everything was satisfactory before leaving. "Dad's been battling the cancer for a while now, but I came home after his doctor gave him six months to live."

If the doctor was correct, that would mean Tom Weller had only a little over a month left, at best. Taylor's mouth tightened as she was swamped with a wave of conflicting emotions. She busied herself cutting into her steak, pretending not to notice Kurt's eyes on her. She knew she needed to say something, but she couldn't pretend to be the least bit sorry at the moment. Not after hearing what Patterson had to say.

Kurt set down his fork. "I know this isn't really the time or the place, but you promised me an answer to one question, so here it is: what's going on between you and my father, Taylor?"

"You're right," Taylor said quietly. "It's not the time or the place." She had already walked them back from one topic that had the potential to ruin the evening; she wasn't about to broach a subject that would certainly do so. She met Kurt's frustrated gaze squarely. "I promise I'm not avoiding the issue. I just . . . I don't want to get into that, tonight of all nights. If you're not busy in the morning, is there somewhere private we can go to talk?"

Kurt's expression lightened. "We could meet up at the fort if you want. Or . . . you could stay at my cabin tonight. I have a guest room," he added hurriedly, not wanting her to think he was suggesting she sleep with him. Not that he didn't want that, but he wasn't about to cross that line until everything was out in the open between them.

"I thought . . . I just assumed you were staying with your parents."

"No. I prefer to have my own space, and since Sarah's a nurse, it made more sense for her to stay with them anyway, so Sawyer needed my old room. I rented a cabin from an old high school buddy of mine. It's only about fifteen minutes from Clearfield, but far enough away to give me some peace and quiet. I've actually been thinking about buying it, I like it so much."

"In that case, I'd love to see it." Taylor went quiet for a moment, taking the time to savor her meal. "But I didn't bring a change of clothes with me. Maybe I could come by in the morning?"

"No worries," Kurt said cheerfully. "I'm pretty sure your mom's got you covered. She dropped off a bag at the courthouse yesterday for me to hold onto and said I'd know when it was needed."

"Gotta love my mom," Taylor murmured. She was actually beginning to appreciate her mother's interference; either that, or she was growing so used to it that it no longer irritated the hell out of her. It certainly worked in her favor in this instance.

"She's quite a character," Kurt agreed as he dug into his own meal.

"Just how did you two get so close, if you don't mind my asking?" Taylor had been curious about that since her return. Really, the only thing her mom and Kurt had ever had in common was her, and with her out of the equation . . . She couldn't fathom what had brought them together.

"I noticed when I came back to town that her house could use a few repairs, so . . ." Kurt shrugged. "I started coming around to help out, we got to talking, and I eventually started making her dinner once a week." Emma had refused to share any current details about Taylor, but that hadn't stopped them from reminiscing about her childhood. He'd felt close to her again for the first time in over a decade. He paused before adding, "I'm pretty sure I was there when she got the call you'd been shot."

Taylor winced, imagining that conversation from his perspective. "I'd say I'm sorry again, but I'm pretty sure it'll never be enough."

"I seem to recall telling you that you had nothing to be sorry for," Kurt said gently. "Anyway—" he interjected a teasing note into his voice, "—it turned out to be a good thing since it gave me my New Year's resolution for next year: Find Taylor Shaw. Of course, now it's back to the drawing board on that," he added thoughtfully.

"Why am I sure you'll think of something?" Taylor teased him right back.

He just grinned at her, and they finished their meal in companionable silence, lingering for a while over a shared chocolate torte before heading back to Clearfield. Traffic was light at this time of night, and once they were out of the city, Kurt reached for her hand again. Taylor shifted in her seat, curling toward him so she could watch him as he drove.

"What's on your mind, Tee?" Kurt finally asked as she continued to study him.

"Why me, Kurt?" Taylor finally found the nerve to voice the question that had been foremost on her mind all evening. For the last couple days, actually. "You were the guy all the girls here wanted to date—handsome, athletic, smart, funny, kind—and you had to know it would be like that at college as well. How could you be so sure I was the right girl for you before you even left, given our age difference? If we hadn't grown up in such a small town, you never would have given me a second look. You probably wouldn't have known I existed, much less been friends with me."

"That's true," Kurt acknowledged. "Our situation was unique, and if for no other reason than that, I'm thankful I grew up here. Look, Tee—" he glanced over at her for a long moment before reluctantly returning his eyes to the road, "—I appreciate all the compliments, and I'm not going to deny that I was flattered by all the attention I got from such beautiful girls, but I caught on pretty quick that it wasn't _me_ they wanted to date as much as the high school quarterback.

"You want to know what set you apart from them? They would have agreed with me if I'd said I was certain the moon really was made of green cheese, just to have me as their arm candy, whereas you never hesitated to challenge my beliefs, to call me on something when you thought I was in the wrong. That's why I fell in love with you. As for our age difference, it's not something I ever thought much about, because you always seemed more mature than your years." The one exception to that had been making sure he limited their physical contact, in order to avoid any temptation that could lead to a statutory rape charge.

Taylor's grip tightened on his hand, and Kurt didn't speak again until he turned onto the road to his cabin, sensing she needed time to contain her emotions. "What about you, Tee? What made you set your sights on me instead of some hot young guy your own age?"

Taylor swallowed hard. "You never tried to ditch me."

Kurt nearly drove them _into_ a ditch at her words. "What?"

"Oh, all that stuff I said earlier about you being handsome and funny and kind, that all played into it later, but the reason I fell for you to begin with is because you did always let me tag along with you, and you were always nice about it. You even stood up for me to your friends. In my infinite wisdom at seven years old, I figured a boy who would do that wouldn't be the type to walk away so easy. That's when I hatched the idea for us to get married."

If he ever found her father, he was going to beat the man to within an inch of his life. Kurt let go of her hand and reached up to cup her cheek, smiling when she leaned into his touch. "I'm really glad you did, Tee," he murmured as he pulled into the driveway, putting the car in park before leaning across the console to kiss her.

Taylor moaned softly as his lips touched hers and Kurt was unable to resist deepening the kiss, neither of them willing to break apart until they were desperate for air. He smiled down at her as her eyes blinked open. "Wait right here," he told her as he got out of the car and retrieved the bag Emma had given him from the backseat before coming around to her side to open her door for her. He slipped an arm around her waist as he led her up the stairs.

It was too dark to see much of the exterior of the cabin, but the inside was beautiful. It featured a stone fireplace, hardwood floors, and plush furniture arranged perfectly to maximize the space. Taylor turned slowly in a circle to take it all in. "This is . . . _Wow_."

Kurt took a seat on one of the couches near the fireplace and motioned for her to join him. She didn't hesitate to kick off her shoes and curl up next to him, laying her head on his chest. He couldn't resist idly running his fingers through her soft hair. "I'm glad you like it. It's become a home away from home. I've always thought it was missing one thing, though."

"What's that?" Taylor asked, struggling to focus as his fingers kept stroking her head. If she were a cat, she would definitely be purring right now.

"A framed drawing, on the wall over there, like the one your mom has in her living room, by this fantastically talented local artist. I don't suppose you'd know where I could get one."

"Hmm." Taylor pursed her lips, pretending to consider his request. "I seem to remember her mentioning that artist, but as I recall she's pretty particular about who she'll draw for. She might take some convincing."

Kurt rested his forehead against Taylor's. "Then I guess it's a good thing that I can be very, _very_ persuasive." He leaned down to capture her mouth once more.

It didn't take her long to concede the point.


	9. Chapter Eight

I do not own Blindspot or any of its characters.

* * *

If Kurt didn't buy this place, she was definitely going to.

Taylor took a seat in the wooden swing on the cabin's wraparound porch, wrapping the blanket she had pulled from the chest at the foot of her bed tightly around her. The sun was just peeking over the horizon, offering her a glimpse of the surroundings it had been too dark to appreciate last night.

The yard was beautifully landscaped, if a bit bare at the moment, the woods flanking the cabin similarly unadorned, and she found herself longing to return here in the spring, when everything was in bloom. She had never seen a place that appealed to her so instantly and completely.

The cabin itself was two stories, its lower half made up of stone, the upper of the traditional log. It had plenty of windows to let in the natural light she favored, and the few rooms she had seen so far had been perfectly furnished to complement the space. Her favorite feature so far was the hot tub at the far end of the porch, and she wished the weather wasn't too cold to test it out. Maybe it would warm up before she left and she would get that chance.

"Morning, Tee." Kurt's sleep-roughened voice interrupted her reverie and she smiled as he came into her line of sight. He pressed a quick kiss to her forehead and handed her one of the cups of coffee he carried before sitting down next to her, carefully tugging the blanket over to cover both of them. "You're up early."

"Mmm. Old Navy habits die hard, I guess." She took a sip of coffee and leaned her head against his shoulder. "I was just admiring your hot tub."

"I thought you might like that." Kurt slipped his free arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. "Bring a swimsuit next time you come over and we'll try it out."

"It's not too cold?" Taylor asked doubtfully.

Kurt chuckled. "Not for an adventurous gal like yourself. You'll love it."

"I love it _here,_ " Taylor said softly.

He was definitely buying this place. He pressed a soft kiss to her temple, and the two of them sat in companionable silence as they drank their coffee and watched the sunrise. He glanced down at her when she shivered. "Ready to go back inside? There's more coffee, and I can whip us up some omelets for breakfast."

"Sounds good." Taylor allowed him to pull her to her feet and lead her back inside. She took a seat at the kitchen table as he refilled their coffee cups. He placed her mug in front of her, along with a small, brightly wrapped package he withdrew from his pocket. "Today's present?" she guessed, already carefully unwrapping the paper. It contained a simple silver keychain with her name written in flowing script. There were several keys on it. "Are these . . .?"

"Mi casa es su casa," Kurt told her. "Now you can come over and use that hot tub any time you want." And since he and Emma were coordinating presents again today, that was likely to happen a lot sooner than Taylor realized. He dropped a hand to her shoulder and she looked up at him with a teary smile. "It wasn't supposed to make you cry," he joked.

"Happy tears," Taylor assured him, placing her hand over his on her shoulder. "I seem to have a lot of those lately. Thank you, Kurt. I, uh . . . I promise not to come over so much I wear out my welcome."

"You don't ever have to worry about that, Tee." Even if they had spent the majority of the last thirteen years together, he couldn't imagine that he'd be tired of seeing her. He couldn't fathom any scenario in which he would ever have enough of her.

Taylor's stomach rumbled and she laughed as she glanced sheepishly up at Kurt. "I guess I'm more ready for that omelet than I thought. I swear I never eat this much back in New York."

Kurt smiled at her as he pulled his hand from beneath hers and headed for the refrigerator to retrieve the ingredients for omelets. "I can tell. Hopefully Mom and I can put some meat on your bones while you're here."

"With the two of you ganging up on me, I'd say that's a definite possibility." Taylor had never been able to resist Maggie's cooking and from what she'd tasted so far, Kurt's was every bit as good as his mom's. She was going to have to step up her exercise routine while she was here to stay in shape. She watched him retrieve a cutting board and knife and start expertly dicing a tomato. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No, I've got this." Kurt made short work of the remaining vegetables and began breaking eggs into a bowl. "You might want to check your cellphone. It sounded like you got a text while I was brewing the coffee earlier."

Taylor reached for her phone and punched in the passcode, raising an eyebrow at the number of messages awaiting her. The most recent was from her mom, wanting to know how their date had gone, and she deleted it. She would tell her in person in a few hours. The remainder were from Tasha, and she laughed as she read them. Apparently Patterson had blabbed about her budding relationship with Kurt over drinks last night and Tasha wanted details. Urgently. And a picture.

Kurt glanced over at her. "What's so funny?"

"Just one of my friends from work wanting to know all about you." Taylor was still chuckling as she stood and moved toward Kurt until she found the perfect angle to take the photo. "Smile for the camera."

The corners of Kurt's mouth tilted up just as she clicked the button. Taylor smiled at the image that appeared on the screen. _Perfect._ Tasha was going to flip when she saw that he could cook in addition to being so good-looking. She typed out a quick message, attached the picture, and hit send.

Kurt shook his head at the mischief dancing in Taylor's eyes as he set her omelet down in front of her. "Do I want to know what you just told her?"

Taylor grinned at him as he seated himself across from her. "In this case, it's more what I didn't say." She'd simply told Tasha this was what she woke up to, knowing her friend would assume far more than had actually occurred. Her eyes widened as she bit into her omelet. "Oh my god, this is amazing. How did you manage to make something so simple taste so . . . so . . ." She couldn't even find words to describe how good it was.

Kurt smiled at her enthusiasm. "I dated a chef for a while after I first moved to New York," he offered. "Actually, dated probably isn't the right word since we spent most of our time in the kitchen trying out new recipes. I learned most of what I know from her."

"That explains a lot." Taylor fell silent, savoring every bite of her breakfast. "Can you teach me how to make these?"

"I'll teach you how to make anything you like, Tee," he promised.

Once they had finished cleaning up, they migrated back to the couch they had shared last night, Taylor again cuddling into Kurt. The silence lengthened between them, neither of them inclined to engage in idle chit-chat. "Did you know the police caught Vanessa's killer?" she asked at length.

Kurt started as Taylor spoke, surprised nearly as much by her voice as the question. Her breathing had evened out so much he'd thought she was asleep. "No, Tee, I didn't know that. I transferred colleges when I decided to switch to a criminal justice degree and when I left town, I was still a suspect. I'm glad to hear it, though. How did you find out?"

"I asked a colleague to look into it. I thought if the murder was still unsolved, she could get a hold of the case files, maybe run the baby's DNA again to see if whoever Vanessa was seeing was in any of our criminal databases, but—"

"Hold on," Kurt interrupted. "How did you know Vanessa was pregnant? I never mentioned that." He hadn't even known it until the detectives confronted him with that fact in the interrogation room, demanding his DNA, confident it was his child. When the DNA test had absolved him, they'd accused him of killing her because she was cheating on him.

"She told me," Taylor whispered.

Kurt pulled back until he was sitting on the very edge of the couch so he could see Taylor's face. She was looking down at her hands and he placed a finger under her chin, tipping her head up until her eyes met his. "She told you she was pregnant . . . or she told you she was pregnant with _my_ baby?"

Taylor didn't need to answer; he read the truth in her eyes. Her pointed questions about the nature of his relationship with Vanessa made perfect sense now. Kurt sat back as the scope of what Vanessa had done became clear. If the woman were in the room with him right now, he would cheerfully have strangled her. " _That's_ why you left?" he asked when he could trust himself to speak.

"It's . . . it's part of the reason why I left, Kurt, but it's more complicated than that." Taylor swallowed hard. "I think we need to deal with this first before we get into the other, though. I know it must not seem like it now, but I honestly thought I was doing the right thing at the time."

"And I honestly don't understand how you could think that your leaving like you did could ever be the right thing for us."

"I didn't say that I thought it was the right thing for all of you," Taylor corrected wearily. "I said I thought it was the right thing to do. There's a big difference in the two." She paused for a moment to let that sink in. "Like I said the other day, you and Vanessa made a very convincing couple, and I had no reason to doubt her word when she came to see me."

"What did she say to you?" Kurt demanded.

"After she . . . after she told me she was pregnant, she talked about how excited you were and how much you were looking forward to being a family. She said that she could see that I had a crush on you, but that she hoped I wouldn't use your affection for me to do anything to come between the two of you. She told me that as a child of a broken home whose dad was never around, I should understand better than anyone how important a stable home environment and a father's influence was, and she begged me not to do anything to jeopardize that for her child. For _your_ child."

Kurt closed his eyes. Vanessa had been a psychology major, a good one, and she had read Taylor like a book. Taylor had the biggest heart of any woman he'd ever met; no matter how much she loved him, she would sooner have thrown herself under a bus than risked endangering a child's emotional well-being. _Especially_ his child.

She was going to make a wonderful mother someday.

"Why . . ." He took a deep breath to steady his voice as he looked at her again. "Why didn't you come talk to me about this?" He could have cleared up the whole misunderstanding in an instant. "Or Mom, if you were too embarrassed to ask me? You'd known us your entire life, Taylor. Vanessa was a stranger. I understand how it must have looked, but why would you take _her_ word at face value without checking with one of _us_? How could you not have had _any_ doubts about what she had to say?"

"Because . . ." Taylor couldn't stand the sadness in Kurt's eyes, the pain she was about to put there, but she couldn't bear to look away. "Because your father was with her when she came to my house to talk to me, Kurt." She watched as a range of emotions played out on his face: shock, anger, disbelief. Anger won out as the truth sank in.

Kurt shot to his feet and began pacing the room with quick steps, needing an outlet for the rage boiling up inside him. He'd thought he was ready to hear the truth, had even thought he knew what that truth was, but nothing could have prepared him for this revelation. He gave a bitter laugh as he turned back to Taylor. "So my father, who _knew_ how I felt about you, not only sabotaged my chance at having a relationship with you, he's been feigning ignorance of why you left ever since. How . . .? _Why_ . . .?"

"I think that's something you need to ask him," Taylor offered as she stood and slowly walked over to Kurt. Despite the tension radiating from him, he automatically reached for her and she slid her hands up to his shoulders, rubbing lightly. "In the interests of full disclosure, I do have some idea why, but he doesn't know that I know and since it touches on the other reason I left, I would prefer to keep it that way for now. I think you should give him the chance to answer for his actions, and I admit, I'm curious to learn what he has to say."

Kurt felt his anger begin to subside at Taylor's soothing touch. She was right. His father needed to explain himself. He took a deep breath. "Okay. _Okay_. You're right. Let's go ask him." He turned toward the door to retrieve their coats.

Taylor felt a surge of panic as she realized he meant for her to accompany him. She grabbed his arm to stop him. "No, Kurt. I . . . I don't think it's a good idea for me to go with you. Things with Sar—with _your family_ ," she amended hastily, "—are still rocky, and getting in the middle of this won't exactly help my case.

"My dad," Kurt said deliberately, "has had over thirteen years to own up to what he's done. Hell, he had his best opportunity yet the other night; the day your mom came clean with you about Vanessa, I told my family over dinner, and still he said nothing. As for him being more comfortable without you present, he had no qualms dragging you into this to begin with, and he apparently never spared a moment to consider _your_ feelings."

His face softened as he looked down at her. "We're a couple now, Tee," he continued quietly, linking their hands as if to give her a physical reminder of that fact. "I want us to present a united front on things this important. What my dad did affected both of us, and he owes both of us an explanation. And don't worry about Sarah; she's just in protective sister mode right now. Once she sees that you're not going to pull a vanishing act again, she'll warm right back up to you."

Taylor had her doubts on that score, but she couldn't fault the rest of Kurt's logic. "You're right. We need to do this together, but we can't do it now. Not while Sawyer is at home." Not only was the subject matter inappropriate for a nine-year-old, but it was likely to get quite heated.

Kurt glanced at his watch, conceding the point. Since it was a Saturday morning, Sawyer would probably sleep in for another hour at least and he would want breakfast when he awoke. "In that case, why don't you fill me in on the rest of what your colleague found out about Vanessa's murder, then we'll go tell your mom what's going on, see if she'll watch Sawyer so we can talk." He glanced at her expectantly as they sat back down on the couch.

Taylor took a deep breath. "So Patterson—that's my colleague—she called the police department and spoke to a detective in their cold case unit who'd taken over Vanessa's case a couple years after her murder. He thought the original detective had rushed to judgment in deciding you were guilty and ran the baby's DNA just like I planned to do. Their lab got a match to a man with a long rap sheet who was in prison in Kentucky for the attempted murder of his pregnant girlfriend. There were a lot of similarities in that woman's case and Vanessa's, and when the detective flew out there to question him, he confessed to avoid the death penalty. He has a long history of violence against women, and he apparently became enraged when Vanessa broke things off with him."

"That was why she was so anxious to leave town for a while," Kurt surmised.

Taylor nodded. "That would be my guess. Before the DNA results came back, the detective spoke to several of her friends who said she had seemed troubled for the last month or so of her life, but she never confided in them what was bothering her. Vanessa was apparently very secretive about her personal life. They knew she'd been seeing someone and had broken up with him about three weeks before her death, but she never gave them the man's name. They also told him she spoke highly of you, and they were convinced you had nothing to do with her murder."

"It would have been nice if she'd _thought_ highly enough of me not to drive a wedge between the two of us," Kurt commented. "I mean, what was her plan, exactly? Even if she had managed to entice me into sleeping with her and to convince me that the baby could be mine, she had to know that I would ask for a DNA test to confirm paternity. Not to mention, since she was already pregnant, the dates wouldn't have matched up."

"I don't think she thought it through," Taylor said. "I think she was desperate, Kurt. Desperate, and scared, and wanting a better life for her child, and it led her to make a really bad choice. I don't know if she intended to deceive you into believing the baby was yours or if she thought with me out of the way you would be willing to raise it as your own, but from what I've been able to gather, Vanessa had no one in her life who ever really gave a damn about her."

Taylor was surprised at the level of compassion she felt for a woman who had helped to make her own life a living hell. "After her own dysfunctional upbringing, your family probably seemed like an answer to prayer for her child." Her smile was tinged with sadness as she gazed up at Kurt, not just for all they had lost, but for the woman who'd been searching for love in all the wrong places, in all the wrong ways, and the baby who consequently never got a chance to live. "Patterson read me your statement to the police. She did try to do the right thing in the end, you know."

A light dawned in Kurt's eyes. "The phone call she made to me the night she died." Her last call, as it turned out. Vanessa had been crying, almost unintelligible, frantic to meet with him as soon as possible. She'd said she needed his help to right a terrible wrong and begged him to meet her later that night, but since he already had plans and he'd figured it was just another ploy to get him to sleep with her, he'd put her off until the next day.

Only tomorrow had never come for her.

"She was going to confess to me what she had done," Kurt said slowly. "If I had done as she asked . . . If I had gone that night . . ." He would have known what was wrong with Taylor. He might even have been able to save Vanessa.

"If you had gone that night, you might have been killed as well," Taylor said sharply. She squeezed his hand tightly. "None of this was your fault, Kurt. Don't you dare blame yourself." She knew that was easier said than done. If he had been hurt because of his involvement with Vanessa, she certainly never would have forgiven herself. "Vanessa made her own choices, but I can't help but feel sorry for her. If she'd had someone like you in her life, I think things would have turned out very differently for her."

"You're remarkable, Tee," Kurt told her as he pulled her into his arms. He didn't know another person who would be capable of displaying such a level of empathy for someone who had caused them so much pain. They huddled together in comfortable silence for some time before he eased back and framed her jaw in his hands. "Before we head over to my parents' house, I want you to know that nothing you have to say will change how I feel about you. If it comes down to a choice between you and my dad, you'll be it, Taylor."

Taylor nodded soberly. "Then I guess it's a good thing I would never ask you to make that choice." Her eyes were misty as they bored into his. "Having me in your life isn't an either-or proposition, Kurt. You said we needed to present a united front on the important things, and there's nothing in this world more important than family. Please . . . please promise me that no matter what you learn today, you won't allow your anger at your dad to cause you to make choices that alienate you from yours. I can't be responsible for that kind of rift, Kurt. I _won't_." She would take the rest of the truth to her grave first.

Kurt took a moment to consider how to respond. "Tee, if something like that happens, you're the last person who would ever be responsible for it. You have the biggest heart of anyone I know. I just watched you defend Vanessa, of all people, so I'd be lying if I said the fact that you still harbor so much resentment toward my father didn't concern me." It told him that she found his dad's motives indefensible, which could only mean a bigger bombshell was coming. "Under the circumstances, I don't think I can make a promise like that."

"Kurt—"

"Hear me out, Tee," Kurt said gently. "I promise you that nothing in this world would make me turn my back on Mom or Sarah or Sawyer. I'll always be just a phone call away to them, but considering I don't know the whole story yet, I _can't_ say the same for my father. At this point, all I can do is keep an open mind about what he has to say and go from there. Your well-being and happiness is paramount to me now, and while I hope that doesn't create any conflict with my family, it won't change anything. That's what being part of a couple is all about."

Taylor let out a shaky breath as she curled back into his side, resting her head on his chest. "I know that, Kurt, and I agree with everything you're saying, but I wish I had . . . I should have waited until after Christmas to tell you this. This will probably be the last holiday you'll have the chance to celebrate with your dad, and I hope I didn't just screw that up."

Kurt sighed, knowing it would be pointless to try to tell her that she hadn't ruined anything, that his father would be reaping the consequences of his own actions. "I'll make you a deal, then, Tee: you tell me the whole truth, every detail, before then, and I'll agree to suspend any hostilities I have and go over there for at least a few hours Christmas morning." Even if it killed him, he would do it to erase that haunted look in her eyes. He would do anything for her.

Taylor decided to push her luck. "Christmas dinner—"

"Will be spent with my amazing new girlfriend and her mother," Kurt interrupted. "I reserve the right to choose where. I'm not . . . ruling out my parents' house; we'll revisit this issue once I know the whole story. That's the best deal you're going to get, Tee. Take it or leave it."

Taylor scooted back and held out a hand. "I'll take it."

Kurt eyed her outstretched hand in amusement before taking it, not to shake it as she intended, but to pull her into his arms. "Second rule of being part of a couple, Miss Shaw. We don't shake hands to seal a bargain; we seal it with a kiss." He lowered his mouth to hers.

She had a feeling she was really going to love learning all these rules of his.


	10. Chapter Nine

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

In the end, Kurt called the friend he was renting the cabin from, who had two boys Sawyer's age, to come get his nephew. Once Emma heard what was going on, she made up her mind to accompany them to the Wellers and no amount of argument from Taylor could dissuade her. She was determined to be there to stick up for her child in a conversation she perceived could get very ugly very quickly.

Sawyer was just finishing up breakfast when they arrived. He spotted them first as they stepped into the dining room. "Uncle Kurt!" His gaze drifted to the unfamiliar woman his uncle was holding hands with. "Who are you?" he asked innocently.

"Sawyer, this is Taylor," Sarah spoke up. "She's Miss Emma's daughter. We were all friends when we were little kids like you, and um . . . well, she was gone a long time and now she's back." Her gaze shifted to the man on her brother's left. "Hey, Matt. What are you doing here?"

Kurt frowned at his sister, irritated that she had chosen to downplay Taylor's role in his life.

"Hi, Sarah," Matt greeted. "Mr. and Mrs. Weller. It's good to see you all again. I just came by to see if Sawyer would be interested in coming over to my house to play some video games with Cody and Ethan for a while." He glanced at the boy. "What do you say, bud?"

Sawyer was still studying Taylor. "Are you my uncle's new girlfriend?"

"Yes, I am," Taylor told him frankly. "I've heard a lot about you, Sawyer. It's nice to finally meet you."

Sawyer's eyes narrowed. "Are you gonna marry him and take him away from us like my friend Danny's new stepmom did his dad?"

Kurt started to speak, but Taylor held up a hand. She knelt down in front of the boy and met his gaze squarely. "No, Sawyer, I'm not. I've known your family my entire life, so I would never want to do anything to hurt them. I promise you, if I marry your uncle, I'll be joining your family, not taking him away from it."

" _If_?" Kurt murmured in her ear when Sawyer gave her a shy smile and she stood back up.

Taylor smothered a laugh. "If you want me to change it to a _when_ , you're going to have to ask me," she whispered back, the heat that flared in his eyes making her go weak at the knees.

"Count on it," Kurt vowed. He turned to Sawyer. "I'm not going anywhere, little buddy. _When_ I marry Taylor, you'll be gaining an aunt, not losing an uncle. I promise I'll always be just a phone call away if you need me. Now, how about going with Mr. Lane and playing those video games, huh?"

Sawyer turned to Sarah. "Can I, Mom? _Please_?"

Sarah cast a speculative glance at Kurt, and he gave her a barely perceptible nod in return. "Sure, honey. Go get your coat and hat." She turned to Matt. "Give me a call when you're ready for him to come home, and I'll come get him."

"Oh, I'll be more than happy to bring him home. My in-law's arrived last night," he explained at Sarah's questioning look. "Absence has not made their hearts grow fonder of me, so believe me, I appreciate the excuse to get out of the house even for a few minutes." He smiled as Sawyer bounded back into the room and draped an arm around his shoulders, steering him toward the door. "Come on, bud. Let's get out of here so the grownups can talk."

"Why don't we all go have a seat in the living room," Maggie suggested as the door closed behind them. "Can I get any of you something to eat? Drink?"

Taylor gave her head a negative shake. "We're good, Mom," Kurt said with a quick look at Emma.

"So," Sarah asked once they were all seated, "what are we going to be discussing today? It must be pretty important for you to go to all this trouble to get Sawyer out of the house." She glanced from her brother to Taylor, noting with amusement that they had once again gravitated impossibly close to one another. "Have you two lovebirds decided to skip the dating and get right to the wedding?"

"We haven't discussed marriage yet," Kurt said with a finality that suggested the subject was closed. "We actually came over today to talk about one of the reasons why Taylor left."

Sarah sat up straight. "Fantastic. Since Emma's here, I'd like to start by saying that coercing Kurt into bringing home a fake girlfriend to manipulate Taylor into doing what you wanted instead of sitting her down and reasoning with her wasn't just lousy parenting, it was just generally a really crappy thing to do. As soon as Kurt told us about it, I knew it had to have factored into Taylor's decision to leave. What on earth were you thinking?"

"I won't disagree that my actions were . . . misguided, but at least they were motivated by love for my child," Emma shot back. She leveled a scathing glare at Kurt's father. "What's your excuse, Tom?"

"Mom," Taylor said softly. So much for her hope that this conversation could remain civil. She reached for Kurt's hand, gripping it tightly, comforted by his gentle squeeze in response.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sarah demanded. She turned to her father when Emma didn't respond. "What is she talking about, Dad?"

Maggie felt her blood run cold at the guilty expression on her husband's face. "What did you do, Tom?"

Tom shifted in his chair as every eye in the room fixed on him with laser-like focus. He had known this moment was coming since he heard of Taylor's return to town, but despite all the thought he had given to what he would say, he was still caught off-guard. He looked at Taylor. "I'm sorry, Taylor. I never . . . I never meant to hurt you. Either one of you. I'm so, so sorry."

"We're not looking for an apology, Dad," Kurt said harshly. "We would like you to explain to us why you would tell Taylor that Vanessa was pregnant with my child without making any effort to confirm that fact first."

" _What_?" Maggie and Sarah burst out at the same time, exchanging stunned glances with each other, then Kurt and Taylor, before turning their attention back to Tom. Silence settled over the room.

Sarah's first thought was that someone must have misunderstood, that this all had to be a tragic misunderstanding, but one look at her father's face put that vain hope to rest. She struggled to find her voice. "No . . . Dad, how _could_ you? You knew how Kurt felt about Taylor. We all did. This is . . . this is crazy. It makes no sense."

"Kurt would hardly have been the first young man to get a girl pregnant he didn't really care for," Tom said defensively. "He was in a tough spot, having feelings for a girl too young to legally get involved with. Did any of you really think he was living like a monk at college?"

"That's beside the point," Emma said hotly, furious at Tom's attempt to deflect blame by injecting Kurt's sex life into the conversation. "Your son could have been sleeping with every girl on campus and it still wouldn't have excused what you did. How dare you come to my house and bring up such a subject to my fifteen-year-old daughter? If anyone was going to speak to Taylor about this, it should have been me. Had you come to me as you ought, all of this could have been avoided."

"It could have been avoided anyway," Maggie said slowly, feeling her own anger build. "Vanessa was murdered just a few days after she and Kurt went back to college. She's been dead for over thirteen years. _Thirteen years_ , Tom. Why didn't you come clean then? How could you keep this a secret all that time? You _saw_ what missing Taylor did to Kurt. I don't understand how you could keep quiet and let your son— _your son_ —continue to suffer."

"I didn't know that was the reason Taylor left," Tom defended. "None of us were given any explanation. She just quit coming around one day, and Emma started refusing to give us any information about her."

"Come on, Dad. Taylor cuts us out of her life around the time you tell her that, and it never crossed your mind that what you'd done might be the reason why?" Sarah asked skeptically.

"Of course I considered the possibility," Tom retorted. "I just felt there had to be another reason. I thought Taylor considered us family. It didn't make sense to me that she would do something so drastic simply because a boy she liked fell in love with another girl. I thought she was too level-headed for that." He looked at Taylor. "Apparently I was wrong. On all counts."

She had never realized Kurt's father was so good at making himself out to be the injured party. At the expense of the _actual_ injured party, no less. It was quite a talent. "Wow," Taylor said with a laugh as she felt Kurt stiffen beside her, "there are so many fallacies in that statement, I hardly know where to begin."

She took a deep breath. "I'll start with what you got right: I did—I _do—_ consider you family," she said with a pointed look at Maggie and Sarah, making it clear that Tom was no longer included in that, "and Kurt's supposed relationship with Vanessa _wasn't_ the only reason I left. I like to think I was pretty level-headed, but I was also a not-quite-sixteen-year-old girl, with all the same emotions and insecurities of any teenager. And Kurt wasn't just 'some boy I liked.' I fell in love with him when I was seven years old. But you knew that already, because we spent hours discussing him when Maggie went back to work after Sarah left for college. The first thing I would do when I got home from school on the weekends was come over here to talk to you about Kurt."

"And I was never in love with Vanessa," Kurt added, simmering with barely restrained fury at his father's attack on Taylor. "Which you would have known if you had come to me as you should have done. You know, the first thing I asked Taylor was why she had taken the word of a stranger without checking with one of us first. What's your excuse, Dad?"

"What difference does it make, Kurt?" Tom asked sharply. "Nothing I say at this point will give you back the years you've lost together. I admit I made a mistake, and I've apologized. Why can't we just let bygones be bygones? I'd like to enjoy my last Christmas on earth in peace with all my family around me."

"Really, Dad? You know what I would have liked? I would have liked to have had Taylor by my side for the past _thirteen_ Christmases. I know Mom and Sarah would have liked to have had her around as well. Emma would have liked to have seen her daughter more than once or twice a year in all that time. And I would have _loved_ —" Kurt took a deep breath. "I would have _loved_ to have had those thirteen years' worth of memories of being with Taylor. Of dating her, and marrying her, and making a life with her. But unfortunately, we don't always get what we want. You've shown me that today. So don't expect to get what you want from me without a little honesty. It's the least you can do after all the pain you've caused."

Kurt kept his eyes on his father, waiting for a response, giving the man every opportunity to answer for his actions, but when he remained stubbornly silent, Kurt shrugged. "Well . . . you can't say I didn't try." He rose, turning to Taylor and Emma. "Let's go. Dad, if you change your mind . . . you know how to reach me. But don't contact me unless it's to give me a straight answer."

"Dad," Sarah pleaded softly as Emma and Taylor rose to follow Kurt, seeing their mother frozen in her seat, too stunned to speak, her eyes awash with unshed tears. "Please. Tell Kurt what he needs to know. Don't let him walk out of here this way. There's still time to fix this. _Please_ , Dad."

Her father remained as mute to her pleas as he had Kurt's and she stepped in front of her brother in desperation. "Kurt. Don't do this. What Dad did was horribly wrong, I'm not disputing that, but don't compound his mistake by walking out like this. It's Christmas and we're your family too. You just promised Sawyer you'd always be here for us. Don't make me look in that little boy's eyes and tell him he's losing you too."

Kurt pulled Sarah into a fierce hug. "Don't worry, sis. I promised Sawyer I'd always be just a phone call away, and that goes for you and Mom too. And I gave Taylor my word before we came over that no matter what, I'd spend a few hours here Christmas morning. Call me when Sawyer wakes up and I'll come right over."

Given how angry her brother was, and justifiably so, that was a huge concession for him to make. She would have liked more, but she knew better than to push her luck. "Thank you," Sarah said quietly to Taylor as Kurt walked over to their mom, taking a seat beside her and hugging her tightly as well. "I know I haven't been all that welcoming since you've been back, but thank you for using your influence with Kurt to try to keep the peace. I appreciate it more than you know. If there's anything I can do for you . . ."

"Well, actually . . ." Taylor mentioned, relieved at Sarah's overture and determined to meet her halfway, "I _could_ use someone to go with me Monday to do some last-minute Christmas shopping, if you're free. I was going to head into Pittsburgh, but I don't really know my way around there. I could use some advice on what to get Kurt."

Sarah was pretty sure she knew exactly what Taylor could get him, but she refrained from the suggestion that Taylor simply gift-wrap herself. Judging by the blush staining her cheeks as she looked from her to Emma, Taylor knew what they were both thinking anyway. "Sure," Sarah agreed. "I was going to suggest we go out for lunch one day soon anyway. I know a great little Mexican restaurant in Pittsburgh, if you still like that kind of food."

"Sounds good," Taylor replied with a smile, relieved that she was making headway in her relationship with Kurt's sister. They might never get back to the same footing they'd had as teenagers, but hopefully they could forge a new path. "I'd like to get an early start that morning, if that's okay with you."

"That'll be fine," Sarah said as Kurt and Maggie made their way over to them. "You can pick me up here whenever you're ready."

Maggie's eyes were red-rimmed as she looked at Taylor. "Could I talk to you in the kitchen for a moment, dear?"

"Of course," Taylor replied instantly, giving Kurt's arm a gentle squeeze as she saw him tense up, about to protest. She followed his mom into the other room.

"I'm so sorry about all this, Taylor." Maggie pulled her into a tight embrace. "I'll keep trying to get Tom to answer for what he's done, but . . ." She shrugged helplessly as she pulled back. "I hope you know you'll always be welcome here." Not that Taylor was likely to want to come back after this morning's exchange. "I know I don't have any right to ask after everything that's happened, but I need a favor."

"Name it," Taylor responded without hesitation. They talked for several more minutes before rejoining the others.

Kurt slipped a protective arm around Taylor's waist, noting her misty eyes. "Everything okay?"

"Never better," she reassured him with a smile, choosing to keep the content of her conversation with his mom a secret for now. "Goodbye, Maggie. Sarah, I'll see you first thing Monday morning."

"Where are you and Sarah going?" Kurt asked as they started down the driveway toward Emma's house.

"Last-minute Christmas shopping in Pittsburgh," Taylor told him, linking her arm through his. "I have a few more people to shop for than I'd planned on." She had been tempted to buy the Wellers' presents before she left New York, but she had honestly thought that they would be too angry at her to even want to speak to her, much less exchange gifts.

Kurt glanced down at her. "You don't have to get me anything, Tee. I already have the best Christmas present I could ask for, having you back in my life."

"And I feel the same way." She leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked. "So I'll make you a deal. You don't give me a gift, and I won't buy you one." She hid her smile, knowing he would never agree to it.

Kurt sighed, conceding that he wouldn't be winning this argument. "Just promise me you won't break the bank, okay?"

"I won't," Taylor agreed at once, knowing his definition of that and hers probably varied greatly. "Between now and then, I would appreciate any ideas you could give me about what to get your mom and Sarah and Sawyer."

"I'll make you a list," Kurt promised.

Taylor started to follow her mom into the house, but Kurt held onto her arm as he paused beside his car, tugging her back. She glanced up at him, puzzled. "Aren't you coming inside?"

"No, I need to go by the station for a while," Kurt told her. Emma peered back at them from the doorway. "And I think your mom could use some time alone with you right now. I can tell she's dying to find out all about our date, and she still has to give you today's gift."

"Kurt—"

"I'll see you tonight," he assured her as he pulled her into his arms. Hopefully at his cabin, if all went well with Emma's gift. "Before I go, I want you to know . . . what my father said about me sleeping with other girls at college because you were so young . . . he was wrong about that too. I never slept with anyone else after I'd realized my feelings for you until I thought I'd lost you forever. I'm not saying I wasn't tempted, but I was more than happy to wait for you."

Just as she'd waited for him. Taylor bit her lip as she looked up at him, unsure how to mention that she was nearly thirty years old and had yet to go to bed with a man. It wasn't as if she'd deliberately chosen to hold out for him, after all. Sure, when she was a love-struck teenager, she'd always imagined he'd be her first, but she'd surrendered that illusion when she turned her back on Clearfield. Ironic that now it appeared the tables had turned full circle.

"What is it, Tee?" Kurt asked tenderly as he watched her worry her lip, a faint blush staining her cheeks. "You can tell me anything, you know that, right?"

"I just . . . It's . . ." She took a deep breath. "You know how Mom mentioned at dinner the other night that I'd only seen one guy for three dates at most?"

"Yeah," Kurt said slowly, still watching her.

"I actually saw one guy five times," Taylor said idly, shaking her head as she realized she was getting off topic. "Anyway, the thing is, I haven't . . . I've never . . ."

Kurt took pity on her as she got more and more flustered. "You're still a virgin."

She stared up at him open-mouthed. "How did you—"

"Know?" Kurt finished. "I didn't, not until just now, but I could tell you were very inexperienced the first time I kissed you. Why do you think I pulled back last night?"

She looked away as the color in her cheeks deepened at the memory of just how heated it had gotten between them before he ended it. She'd been incredibly disappointed but also strangely relieved. She wondered how long it would be before he ran for the hills. On top of all the mess with his father, now he had to deal with this.

Some of her doubts must have shown on her face, because he placed a finger under her chin, tipping her head up until her eyes met his again. "It wasn't because I didn't want you, Tee; believe me. Your being a virgin doesn't bother me at all." Though it would change his approach when they finally consummated their relationship. "But before that time comes, I want there to be no more secrets between us, and I want us both to be very comfortable crossing that line. I've waited this long for you; I'm not going to rush you into doing something you're not ready for.

"Maybe it's too soon to say this," he added, sensing she still needed reassurance, "but I don't want you to go another minute without knowing how I feel." He brought his other hand up and framed her jaw in his palms. ""I love you, Taylor Shaw. I'm _in love_ with you, and you don't have to worry that anything you have to tell me will change that for a minute. I'll wait for you a lifetime if I have to. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I'm never letting you go again."

Taylor stared at him, dumbfounded. It was one thing to know how he felt about her, but to hear him actually say it . . . A stray tear leaked from her eye and he gently brushed it away with his thumb. The action roused her from her daze and she flung herself into his arms. "Oh, Kurt . . . I love you too." She took a ragged breath. "I'm in love with you, and it doesn't feel too soon at all to say that, because I can't remember a time when I haven't felt that way. I don't know what I ever did to deserve you, but you don't ever have to worry about letting me go again, because I promise that from now on, I will always be very easy to find."

"I'll hold you to that," Kurt murmured as he leaned down to claim her lips, oblivious to Emma's gleeful face pressed to the glass door or the curious stares of several of his parents' neighbors as they drove by.

"You're mine now, Taylor Shaw," he said as he finally, reluctantly, broke the kiss, brushing back a stray lock of her hair.

"And I'm yours."


	11. Chapter Ten

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor ignored her mother's wide grin as she stepped past her into the house, a smile still lingering on her own lips as she turned to watch Kurt back out of the driveway and drive off.

"So," Emma said conversationally, "I guess I don't have to ask if he's a good kisser. You too just practically set the neighborhood on fire. I thought Mrs. Jenkins' eyeballs were going to pop out of her head when she drove by." She hadn't been able to resist waving cheerfully at their straight-laced neighbor.

Taylor refused to be embarrassed. Mrs. Jenkins had never approved of her dress, her interest in sports, or her close friendship with Kurt. As a child, she had often wondered if the elderly Sunday school teacher approved of _life_. "That should give her some good material for her class in the morning then. She can preach about the evils of associating with the opposite sex at a young age, warn them that they'll end up like me if they're not careful."

The two of them looked at each other and burst out laughing. "Smart and successful, with a handsome, wonderful man desperately in love with them?" Emma quipped when she could finally draw a full breath. "Those girls should be so lucky."

Taylor's smile widened as Kurt's parting words to her this morning replayed in her head. "He loves me, Mom."

"Well, of course he does, honey," Emma said as she steered Taylor into the living room and pulled her down onto the couch beside her. "Haven't I been telling you that since you got back?"

"No. I mean, yes, but that's not what I meant. I mean . . ." Taylor took a deep breath. "Kurt just told me he loves me, Mom. He told me he's _in love_ with me."

That boy had been doing that in every way possible without coming right out and saying so even before he realized his feelings for Taylor, but Emma knew how important the words were to her daughter. "Oh, honey." She embraced her daughter and made a mental note to give Kurt an extra-long hug next time she saw him. "I'm so happy for you. Now tell me all about your date last night."

Taylor opened her mouth to speak, but her attention was diverted by the mountain of luggage she had noticed by the door when they walked into the room. There had to be at least ten shoeboxes stacked next to those five suitcases, and a suspicious number of garment bags were draped over them as well. "Getting an early start on your spring cleaning?"

Emma followed her gaze and waved a hand dismissively. "We'll get to that. First, let's talk about your date with Kurt. Don't keep me in suspense any longer."

Taylor eyed that pile for a moment longer before turning back to her mom. She practically glowed with joy as she recounted the evening in detail, omitting only the juicier aspects, much to her delight and her mother's good-natured disgust. "I'm so glad you thought to pack me a bag so I could stay at Kurt's cabin," she said, returning her mother's hug warmly. "It's so beautiful out there. I loved it."

"I'm glad to hear that," Emma said, "because I packed your stuff up for you while you were gone." She gestured to the suitcases that had caught Taylor's eye. "That's my present for you today."

"Homelessness?" Taylor quipped, eyeing the bulging bags. Where had her mom gotten enough stuff to fill them? She was pretty sure she didn't have that much stuff in her New York apartment. More to the point, how long had she been planning this? She certainly hadn't been on any big shopping excursions since Taylor had arrived in Clearfield, and there was no way she could have known it would be needed beforehand. Could she?

"Freedom," Emma corrected airily, hiding her amusement at Taylor's remark. "Honey, you're head over heels in love with a wonderful man who feels the same way about you. You should be spending your nights with him, not staying under your mother's roof. We can still see each other every day while you're here."

"You expect me to just show up on Kurt's doorstep and announce I'm moving in with him?" Taylor asked in disbelief. "After one date?" It had been a pretty great date, and there was the _I love you_ this morning, but still . . .

"Well, you don't have to show up emptyhanded," Emma wisecracked. "I'll spring for a pizza from Mabel's for the two of you tonight if you'd like." She caught sight of Taylor's expression and sobered up quickly. "I'm not trying to force you into anything you don't want to do, Taylor. Why don't you load your bags into your car and you can think it over while we have lunch at the Dutch Pantry? If you decide to do it, you can drop me back here and go on over to Kurt's to get settled in. No pressure."

Yeah, right. Her mom knew her too well. If she walked that stuff out that door, there was no way she'd be bringing it back. She had never been able to resist a challenge, and Kurt _had_ given her a key, after all. Her eyes narrowed as realization sank in. "You guys planned this, didn't you?"

Emma shrugged. "Kurt mentioned the other day when I dropped your bag off with him that he wished he had more time to spend with you before you have to go back to New York, and this seemed like a perfect solution. He's free at nights, and I'm available during the day when he's at work."

If she were a betting woman, she'd have put money on her mom being the instigator behind that conversation, but either way, Taylor realized she didn't really care, because she was moving in with Kurt Weller. She was actually moving in with the man she'd loved all her life, and she couldn't decide whether to cry or scream or pinch herself to make sure this was actually real, that this was really going to happen. She smiled at her mother. "You're the best, Mom, you know that? I love you."

"I love you too, honey." Emma's eyes gleamed. "So does this mean . . ."

Taylor's smile broadened as she let her actions speak for her, getting to her feet and slinging the accessory bag over her shoulder before rolling the largest of the suitcases toward the door. Emma squealed softly as she followed suit with the garment bags and several shoeboxes. "Geez, Mom," Taylor huffed good-naturedly as she hefted the last of the over-full suitcases into the back of her SUV, "what did you pack in these things, lead? I didn't even bring this much stuff with me."

"I know," Emma said pointedly. "Your wardrobe needed a serious overhaul. You can thank me later." She had spent the better part of a week choosing every item in those bags with care, though to be fair she'd had help. Good help, as it turned out, and even better company. She hid a smile as she thought of her partner in crime. She hoped Taylor wouldn't be too upset when she learned what they'd done, but they'd both agreed that the risk was well worth it. And technically, they had both abided by the boundaries that Taylor herself had set up.

"Okay," Taylor said as she closed the hatch, "let me run inside and grab my laptop and my gun safe, and we'll be good to go."

She paused in the doorway over her childhood bedroom, taking one last look around at the familiar surroundings before retrieving the gun safe from the shelf in the closet. She grabbed her laptop off the table in the living room and slipped it in its case before locking up and joining her mother in the SUV.

The Dutch Pantry was crowded at this time of day, even with Christmas just a few days away, and Taylor requested the table in the corner, where they could hear one another speak and she would have a clear view of the other inhabitants. As a cop, she disliked sitting with her back to an open room, and that vigilance had paid off on occasion.

Emma studied Taylor once they had placed their orders. "I hate bringing up a sore subject twice in one day, but I got the distinct impression at the Wellers' this morning that you were withholding a key piece of information about what happened with Vanessa. Want to talk about it?"

Taylor considered it, but shook her head slowly. "I think I should discuss it with Kurt first, Mom, but I'll fill you in later if you want." In a much less public venue, preferably one far from the Wellers' house. The last thing she needed was her mother getting arrested for murder. She wanted her around to walk her down the aisle when the day finally came.

"Oh, I'll definitely want," Emma said grimly. She had a feeling this morning's revelation was only the tip of the iceberg on Tom Weller's misdeeds. She took a deep breath, lightening her tone. "I'm glad to hear you and Kurt are communicating so well. He's such a good man, so easy to talk to." She had discussed her problems with him several times since his return, and he had unfailingly listened without judgment and offered surprisingly innovative solutions. "You know you don't ever have to be afraid to tell him anything."

"I know," Taylor agreed with a smile. She'd certainly found that out this morning. The thought of telling him she was a virgin had terrified her more than revealing to him the truth about his father, but he had been so understanding and sweet to her it had made her love him all the more and eased her fears over their upcoming talk about his dad. It amazed her how easily the two of them were finding it to meet one another halfway in this relationship, how perfectly their strengths in one area complimented the other's weaknesses and vice versa.

The two of them made light conversation until the waitress brought their food, and they lingered over their meal, splitting an order of the apple fritters the restaurant was famous for, so it was well after two o' clock before Taylor dropped her mom off and made her way to Kurt's cabin. _Their cabin_ , she corrected herself, smiling as she pulled into the driveway. She left her bags in the SUV for the moment, wanting to explore her new home in greater detail before unpacking.

She took a deep breath as she turned the key in the lock and stepped inside. She wandered into the living room, just as struck by her surroundings as she had been the first time, and paused next to the fireplace mantel where Kurt wanted to hang one of her drawings, her smile growing as she planned the picture out in her head. She couldn't wait to get started on it.

She made her way downstairs next, not having ventured down to this level on her previous visit, and was disappointed to find it largely bare of furnishings. There was a beat-up old couch in what appeared to be another sitting area, but the remainder of the rooms were empty. She was definitely going to have to turn her creative energies to remedying that situation once one of them bought the place.

She returned upstairs and walked down the hallway to the bedrooms. Kurt had converted the bedroom across from hers into an office where he managed his private investigative business in his spare time and since she had peeked inside last night, she bypassed it in favor of the master bedroom at the end of the hall.

Her steps turned hesitant as she approached the doorway. Even though she was living with Kurt now, even though she would hopefully be sharing his bed with him sooner rather than later, it still felt like an invasion of privacy somehow to enter his personal space. She steeled her courage and stepped across the threshold. Her breath caught in her throat as she surveyed the tasteful décor.

Kurt's room was a direct reflection of the man he was. The bed and dressers were mahogany, the darkest thing in the room, but they were offset by the beige walls, green bedspread, and tan throw pillows. The whole effect was peaceful and charming, evoking the same calm she felt when she was with him, and she was amazed once again by how similar their tastes were.

She made her way back out onto the porch, pulling her phone from her pocket as she walked, taking a quick selfie in the swing she had shared with Kurt this morning before texting him the photo. _What time are you coming home_?

Her phone chimed a moment later. _Sooner, now that I know you're there_.

Her heart warmed at the sentiment. _Pick us up a pizza from Mabel's? Mom's buying. I'll let her know to call in the order._

She laughed out loud at his response. _You know I never turn down free pizza, Tee. See you in about 30 minutes._

 _'_ _K,_ she texted back. _I'll get started hauling in the ridiculous amount of stuff Mom sent with me and start unpacking._ She hesitated before adding, _Love you._

 _Love you too, Tee_ , he responded. _Hold off on the heavy lifting and we'll work on it together when I get home._

She smiled at his thoughtfulness. _Will do,_ she responded. _See you soon._

Once she spoke to her mom, she returned to the porch swing and curled up to wait for Kurt. He arrived even sooner than expected and she smiled shyly at him as he ascended the porch steps, pizza in hand.

"Taylor," Kurt scolded, his breath misting in the chilly air, "you should have waited for me inside where it's warm." He spoiled the lecture by leaning in and giving her a lingering kiss, smiling when her tongue slid past his lips without hesitation to tangle with his. In kissing, as in everything else she had ever attempted, she was a fast learner. Some guys might be put off by the fact that she was a virgin, but he felt honored that she was trusting him to teach her.

"Sorry," Taylor said unapologetically as she followed Kurt into the kitchen and retrieved a couple plates, joining him at the table. She smiled at him as she took her first bite of pizza. "So . . . how was work today?" Her smile broadened as she realized how domestic the question sounded. Just like an old married couple discussing their day.

"Mostly just paperwork," Kurt said. "I'll be glad when the county elects a new sheriff and I can go back to New York. It's not that this job isn't meaningful at times, but I miss what I was doing." Reuniting families wasn't just a career to him; it was a passion. He'd planned to stay here until his dad passed away, but now he wasn't so sure. New York was only about six hours away, after all. And Taylor was going to be heading back there soon.

Taylor placed her crust back on her plate and reached for a second piece of pizza. "When does the county plan to hold an election?"

"I told them I could only promise to hold the job until the first of the year, so they're moving pretty fast on this election." To be honest, he'd been hoping one of the undersheriffs with more seniority would step in, but none of them had wanted the added responsibility. "The candidates who are interested in the position have already filed paperwork to run, and the election is tentatively scheduled for the third week of January. The county council still has to approve that, though. They're having a final vote right after the first of the year."

"So if I take some of the vacation days I've got saved up, we could go back to New York at the same time," Taylor said thoughtfully. Since her time off so far had been mandated by an FBI psychologist, she still had plenty of those. She was enjoying the newfound closeness with her mother, and staying here would also allow her to continue mending fences with Maggie and Sarah.

And of course, she was in no hurry to leave Kurt.

"Assuming you still want me to stick around after the New Year," she joked, laughing when he tossed a balled-up napkin at her in response. "I guess that answers that."

Kurt took her hand and pressed a kiss to the inside of her wrist. "I think it's much more likely that I'll have to use all my powers of persuasion to convince you to stay after you spend a day shopping with my sister," he teased back.

Taylor blinked. "How bad can it be? I'm going to have a list." She had already begun visiting the websites of the stores in the mall she planned to go to save herself time. She already had a couple of must-haves for Kurt, though she was still stumped on what to get Maggie and Sarah and Sawyer.

Kurt laughed. "Tell me all about how well that list worked for you when you get home, okay? Sarah's methods of shopping are . . . interesting," he elaborated at her confused look. "No matter if you think you've found the perfect gift at the very first store you visit, she'll insist you go through every store in the mall before you purchase anything in case you find something you like better. I suggest you wear comfortable shoes, because it is going to be a long, _long_ day."

She always wore comfortable shoes. Well, almost always. "You couldn't have warned me about this _before_ I made plans with her?"

He shrugged. "I would have, if I'd known you were going to ask her. Even my mom steers clear of shopping with Sarah. Just be thankful it's not Black Friday."

"I guess it's a good thing I've missed so many Christmases then," Taylor said thoughtfully. "I can just buy everything I see I like and tell her I'm making up for lost time." And next year, she would make sure Kurt was the one accompanying her. She had a feeling his philosophy on shopping rivaled her own.

"There's no need to break the bank, Tee," Kurt told her. "We're all just happy to have you home."

"Don't worry," Taylor assured him with a smile. "I won't buy any more than I can fit in my SUV." She hadn't quite figured out how to tell him that breaking the bank wasn't an issue for her, even on an FBI agent's salary. Her living expenses over the years had been few, and the investment club she'd joined in college had taught her how to put that salary to good use. She'd proven to have quite a knack for it, and she'd almost always reinvested the dividends rather than spending any of it. Money couldn't buy happiness, after all, and that was the only thing she'd lacked.

Kurt just shook his head and laughed again. "Well, that makes me feel so much better." Clearly, there was no arguing with her on this point. He stood, seeing she was finished eating, and carried their plates to the sink. "Ready to officially get moved in?"

"More than ready." She stood and slipped her hand into his as they made their way out to her SUV, grinning when his good-natured groan as he lifted the first of the suitcases mirrored her earlier one. She got an armload as well and followed him back into the house, trailing him down the hall, surprised when he bypassed the guest room and carried her stuff into the master bedroom. She paused in the doorway. "Kurt?"

Kurt took a deep breath as he turned to face Taylor. "I, uh . . . I know we still have issues to resolve before we . . . before we're intimate, but I realized last night that I wanted you with me, even if all we do is sleep. If you're . . . if you're okay with that, that is. I'll understand if you'd rather stay in the guest room—"

Taylor walked over to him as he spoke, dropping her things on the bed, and leaned up to claim his mouth with hers, effectively shutting him up. She poured every ounce of the love she felt for him into the kiss, telling him without words just how pleased she was by his offer. "I love you, Kurt," she told him when they finally broke apart for air.

"I love you too, Tee." Kurt placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before hefting the suitcases onto the bed. "I'll go bring in the rest of your stuff while you get started sorting through this."

They made short work of unpacking despite Taylor's embarrassment over her mother's lingerie selection, her cheeks heating for a different reason entirely when she met Kurt's smoldering gaze as she held up an embroidered black bra that would leave very little to the imagination.

The two of them were going to have to have that talk about his dad very soon.

Taylor briefly debated broaching the subject before deciding she didn't want anything to spoil this night. Tomorrow morning, then. She knew she'd done the right thing in giving Tom Weller the opportunity to answer for his actions before telling Kurt the whole truth, but she had never regretted doing the right thing so much as she did at this moment. She reached for the final item in the suitcase, a brightly wrapped box with a card attached. _"A little birdie told me you might need this,"_ she read. Well, that was cryptic. She shook the box, trying to gain some clue as to its contents.

"Just open it, Tee," Kurt suggested with a laugh, amused at her antics.

Taylor hesitantly ripped the paper off the box and lifted the lid. It contained a black one-piece halter swimsuit and under that, an emerald green bikini. "I was wondering where I was going to find a swimsuit in December. I'm assuming I have you to thank for telling Mom about the hot tub?"

"No," Kurt said, puzzled. "I never mentioned it to her, and she's never been out here. Maybe Mom or Sarah told her about it."

Taylor's brow furrowed. That didn't seem likely, since her mom had told her that with the exception of Kurt, her relationship with the Wellers had been decidedly cool since Taylor disassociated herself from them. She mentioned as much to Kurt. "It doesn't make sense. She would have had to know well in advance of my visit that you had the hot tub in order to find a swimsuit for me at this time of year, but she was barely on speaking terms with your family, and you and I weren't speaking at all. What would make her think I'd even need it?"

"I think you're overthinking this, Tee," Kurt told her. "It's possible I mentioned it to her in passing and just don't remember. If there's one thing I know about your mom, it's that she's unfailingly optimistic. She probably recalled that conversation and bought these for you in the hopes that we would work things out once you came back to town. Now, why don't you slip into one of those while I go take the cover off the hot tub and we'll try it out."

Taylor nodded, but her investigative senses were still on high alert, her earlier questions about the forethought her mother had put into today's gift once again coming to the forefront of her mind. Something just wasn't adding up here. She pushed the problem aside for now as she donned the black swimsuit and went outside to join Kurt, but she was determined to get to the bottom of it later. She wouldn't be a very good investigator if she let such an obvious red flag go.

Kurt helped her into the hot tub and then headed inside to get changed himself, reappearing in short order with two glasses of wine. Taylor's mouth went dry at the sight of him shirtless as she accepted the glass he handed her. He smiled at her appreciative perusal as he settled in next to her. "Enjoying the view?"

"Absolutely," Taylor said as she set her glass on the deck, deliberately pretending to misunderstand his meaning as she gazed out at the night sky. "The stars are absolutely . . . _breathtaking_ , aren't they?"

She shrieked with laughter as he set his own glass down and pounced, tickling her until she couldn't breathe and then leaning in for a tender kiss, stealing the remaining air from her lungs. This was what had been missing from her life, she realized when she could finally draw breath to form the thought. She recalled thinking once, right before Kurt left for college, that she could no sooner cut him out of her life than the earth could banish the sun, and she realized in this moment just how detrimental it had been to her to do so. This friendship, this connection, this _passion_ , were as essential to her as the air she was currently breathing in.

 _This_ was the happiness that she had been missing for so long, the prize money couldn't buy, and she promised herself in this moment that she wouldn't take a second of it for granted.

Life had granted her a second chance, and she was going to embrace it for all she was worth.


	12. Chapter Eleven

I do not own Blindspot or any of its characters.

* * *

Taylor slept more deeply than she had in years, smiling when her eyes blinked open to reveal Kurt's peaceful face mere inches from her. The two of them had apparently gravitated toward one another in the night, and his arm was slung securely over her waist, holding her to him. She resisted the urge to reach out and touch his cheek, not wanting to awaken him.

She watched him sleep for some time before thoughts of their impending conversation began to intrude on her consciousness. She slipped carefully out from under his arm and dressed quietly, hating to leave the warmth of their bed, to leave _him,_ but needing time to marshal her thoughts before they talked.

She tiptoed down the hallway to the kitchen and brewed a pot of coffee, bundling up warmly before pouring herself a mug and making her way out onto the porch that was fast becoming her sanctuary. Her heart was heavy despite the beauty of her surroundings, despite the joy that lingered form waking up next to the man she loved, and she sighed as she curled up into her usual spot on the swing.

If what she had told Kurt so far had damaged his trust in his father, what she had to confess today would shatter it beyond repair.

She took several sips of the scalding coffee in a futile attempt to ward off the chill that settled into her bones at that realization. She would give anything not to have to be the one to inflict that wound, and her anger at Tom Weller flared anew. Why couldn't he have been enough of a man to confess his misdeeds to his son rather than putting her through this fresh hell?

Why was she always the one left holding the short end of the stick?

"Tee?"

Kurt's voice sounded loud in the pre-dawn stillness and she jumped as he put a hand on her shoulder, so lost in her thoughts that she hadn't even heard him approach. She pasted what she hoped was a reassuring smile on her face before she looked up at him. Judging by the look on his face, she had failed miserably. "I'm sorry if I woke you."

"Come back to bed," Kurt urged her gently, wanting to wrap her up in his arms and kiss her until the shadows gathering in her eyes were replaced by the unfettered joy that had shone from them last night. Only one thing put that look on her face and he wasn't ready for that reality to intrude on them at this hour of the morning. Besides, he had a surprise planned for her. "Please, Tee." He held out a hand in silent entreaty.

Taylor started to shake her head before the pleading note in Kurt's voice registered and she realized how important this was to him. She silently acquiesced, placing her hand in his and allowing him to pull her to her feet and lead her back to their bedroom. No matter how much she would like to get this conversation over with, to put the matter behind them once and for all, they both needed to be ready for it. Kurt had waited over thirteen years to hear the truth; she could wait a few more hours to tell it.

She didn't hesitate this time when she slid under the covers, but shifted right into his outstretched arms as easily as if she'd done it a thousand times before and rested her head on his chest, relishing the solid feel of him against her. They lay that way in comfortable silence for quite some time before the steady beat of his heart caused her eyelids to droop. "I love you, Kurt," she murmured as she began to doze off.

Kurt reached a hand up and gently stroked his hand through her hair as her breathing evened out. "I love you, too, Tee," he whispered back, but she was already asleep. He kissed her forehead before allowing his own eyes to fall closed, and in moments he joined her in slumber.

It was nearly nine before Taylor awoke again. Her eyes flew open when she reached out only to feel the sheets empty and cold next to her. She sat up just in time to see Kurt reenter the room with a laden tray in his hands. "You made me breakfast in bed?" God, could he get any sweeter?

Kurt sat down next to her and carefully slid the tray over to her. "Blueberry pancakes with that cream cheese topping you liked as a kid. I hope they're as good as you remember." He lifted his cup of coffee off the tray.

Taylor's mouth watered as she cut into them. "Judging by how good they smell, they're going to be even better." She moaned as she took her first bite. "Definitely better," she told him, offering him the occasional bite as she made short work of polishing them off. "A girl could get used to waking up like this."

"My girl's going to," Kurt returned as he set his empty coffee cup on the nightstand and leaned over to kiss her. "Now you see why I wanted you to come back to bed this morning," he said softly when he pulled back a fraction, bringing a hand up to cup her jaw. "Good morning, Tee."

"Mmm," Taylor said as she closed the distance to kiss him more deeply. " _Now_ it is." She set the tray on her nightstand and cuddled up to him, tucking her head under his chin as his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. She would have been content to stay like this all day, for a lifetime even, if they didn't have such serious issues to work through. Still, she delayed the inevitable as long as possible. "We need to talk, Kurt."

"I know," he murmured, rocking her gently, hoping to soothe the tension he felt gathering in her body, wanting a few more minutes of just _them_. Finally, reluctantly, he pulled back. "Why don't you get a nice hot shower while I clean up the kitchen and then we'll talk. You'll feel the better for it." He wasn't sure if he meant the shower or the talk, but either was appropriate, he supposed. Or both.

Taylor gave a weak nod and he kissed her on the forehead before retrieving her breakfast tray and leaving the room to give her some privacy. She showered quickly and slipped into one of the new sweaters her mother had bought her and her oldest pair of jeans, the contrast making her smile in spite of her mounting dread.

Kurt had just taken a seat on the couch when Taylor entered the living room and he motioned her over, hiding his frown when she perched on the seat across the room instead. If she needed space in order to have this conversation, he could give her that. He would just have to close that distance when they were done.

Taylor could feel his eyes on her as the silence lengthened between them, and she willed herself to speak, frustrated when she couldn't find the words to begin. "I don't know how to tell you this," she finally admitted in a defeated tone.

"Just start at the beginning, Tee," Kurt urged her gently. "You said that you knew why my father sided with Vanessa, that it had to do with the other reason you left. Tell me about that." He watched for a long moment as she continued to struggle for words, wanting more than anything to go to her, to take her into his arms, but sensing that she wouldn't welcome that right now. "You know, I asked my mom the day you came home if she thought my dad could have molested you." Her eyes flew to his, something flickering in their green depths, but the look was gone before he could define it. "Was I right? Is that what this is about?"

Taylor rose and paced to the window, fighting to maintain her composure. She could feel his eyes on her as she stared unseeingly out at the horizon. "No," she said over her shoulder, "you weren't right." She turned just as the tension began to ease from his shoulders, adding, "But you weren't entirely wrong either." She took pity on him when she saw his confusion. "What I've told you so far is the end of the story. I think I need to take your advice and start at the beginning."

She turned back to the window as Kurt nodded at her. "The day . . . the day your dad and Vanessa came to see me, I had another huge fight with my mom about going back to school. She accused me of not having any ambitions beyond that of becoming Mrs. Kurt Weller and I screamed at her that I hated her and stormed out of the house."

She stared sightlessly out the window, seeing in her mind's eye not the winter landscape here at the cabin, but the spring greenery behind their parents' houses all those years ago. "I was heading to our fort when I passed the oak tree in your backyard and decided to climb it instead." She hadn't climbed that tree since Kurt had left for college and she knew her mother wouldn't look for her there.

"I don't know how long I'd been sitting there when I heard voices approaching." She wrapped her arms tightly around herself as her thoughts drifted back to the moment when life as she knew it came crashing down around her ears . . .

* * *

 _Clearfield_

 _13 years, 9 months, and 14 days ago_

"How are you liking our little town so far?"

Taylor glanced down as she heard Tom Weller's voice and scowled as she saw who he was talking to. Terrific. Just when she thought her day couldn't get any worse, she was literally out on a limb above Kurt's new girlfriend Vanessa. It was bad enough the sultry blonde was dating the man she loved, but not only had she chosen to add insult to injury by treating Taylor like a child, she was being downright condescending to the Wellers as well. Taylor couldn't imagine why Kurt's dad was even still making the effort to be nice to her. Clearly, the relationship wasn't going to last. Kurt was much too good for her.

She briefly considered calling out to them before deciding she was in no mood to deal with whatever snide comment Vanessa would make when she saw Taylor up in the tree and leaned back against the tree trunk to wait them out. Fortunately, neither of them had glanced up as they approached, but she made herself as small as possible to avoid potential detection nonetheless.

"Oh, I love it here," Vanessa gushed in a syrupy tone that was so obviously fake it set Taylor's teeth on edge. Despite her striking looks, the blonde was sadly lacking in personality. She couldn't imagine what Kurt saw in her. Well, beyond the obvious. "Everyone here is so friendly and helpful. I hope Kurt and I are able to come back often for visits once the baby's born."

 _Baby?_ The blood rushed in Taylor's ears at Vanessa's words and she grabbed a solid branch to steady herself. Surely she couldn't mean . . . Surely Kurt wouldn't have . . . No. The baby wasn't his; it simply couldn't be. He might not ever see her in a romantic light, but to settle for someone like Vanessa . . . Pain like she had never known lanced through her heart even as her mind continued to try to deny what she had heard.

Tom Weller was similarly surprised. "You and Kurt are expecting? He didn't mention that. I guess I didn't realize it was so serious between you two."

Vanessa gave a phony nervous laugh. "Oh, dear. Please don't tell him I told you. I'm sure he wanted to surprise you himself, but I didn't want to announce the pregnancy until after the first trimester."

"Your secret's safe with me," Tom assured her. "Anything for the mother of my first grandchild."

Vanessa smiled up at him. "I'm glad to hear you say that. To tell you the truth, it may be fortuitous that I let it slip. I've been observing the dynamic between Kurt and your neighbor girl, and I have to say, I'm very concerned. It's obvious she has quite a crush on your son."

"Taylor?" Tom laughed. "I don't think you have anything to worry about on that score. I won't deny she has a crush on Kurt, but I know my son. He's unfailingly loyal and if he's chosen to be with you, he won't waiver in that commitment. Besides, Kurt doesn't live in Clearfield any longer, and Taylor is away at boarding school. The two of them rarely see one another anymore."

"Still—" Vanessa drew the word out, her intonation decidedly less friendly than it had been a moment ago, "—I would prefer to be sure. My own father was never around, and I want more for my child. I want you to go with me to convince little Miss Taylor Shaw to stay the hell away from your son."

Tom stiffened. " _Little Miss Taylor Shaw_ , as you so contemptuously refer to her, has been a part of our lives since she was born. My wife and I love her like another daughter, and she's practically a little sister to Kurt and Sarah. You may be carrying my first grandchild, but I have a sneaking suspicion she's more a part of this family than you'll ever be. I won't help you." He turned and started walking away.

Taylor felt her grief ease slightly at Tom's staunch defense of her, but the relief didn't last long.

"Oh, I think you will," Vanessa countered smoothly, dropping the feigned pleasantry.

"And why would I do that?" Tom asked as he turned back to her.

Her smile made Taylor's blood run cold as she closed the distance Tom had put between them. "Because if you don't, I'll tell your wife and son how you really feel about the girl you claim to love like a daughter. How do you think they'll react when they learn that you're secretly lusting after a fifteen-year-old they genuinely care about?"

Taylor nearly laughed out loud at Vanessa's ludicrous accusation. Tom Weller's interest in her wasn't sexual; never once in all the time they'd spent alone together had he attempted to touch her anywhere inappropriate. He'd provided nothing more than a sympathetic ear in which to pour out her difficulties with her mother and her unrequited love for his son.

"You're crazy, lady," Tom Weller hissed.

"Am I?" Vanessa gave a tinkling little laugh. "I may not have had a dad, Mr. Weller, but I did have a stepfather. He said he loved me like a daughter too—and every time my mom left for work, he showed that love by taking me into their bedroom and molesting me. And the way he looked at me when he thought people weren't watching? It's the exact same way you look at sweet little Taylor."

"I don't know what you think you saw—" Tom began.

"What I know I saw, you mean," Vanessa corrected. "If there's one thing my experience taught me, it's how to recognize men like you. You hide it well, but for someone who knows what they're looking for . . . I knew exactly what you were five minutes after Taylor walked through your front door."

Taylor looked from one to the other as the silence lengthened between them, willing Tom to defend himself, to tell Vanessa that she was imagining things, that he had never thought of her in that light. The expression on his face put the first chink in her armor of disbelief.

"Do you take me for a fool, young lady?" Tom asked, desperately trying to find a way out of the corner she was backing him into. "You don't have any proof against me, only suspicions that are colored by your own traumatic experiences. My wife and son will never believe such outlandish allegations."

"Maybe not," Vanessa allowed, "but if you were willing to take that chance, you would have kept on walking when I first confronted you. You stayed because deep down, you don't believe your family's love for you will be strong enough to overcome their doubts about what you are, do you? You know that even if they dismiss my accusations, they'll never quite look at you the same. There will always be that kernel of suspicion in the back of their minds every time they see you with Taylor.

"Relax, Mr. Weller," Vanessa advised, relishing the man's sickly look. She had him right where she wanted him now. "I have no interest in outing your dirty little secret. What I'm proposing is a trade that will be beneficial to the both of us."

"There's nothing you could offer me that I want," Tom spat.

"Really?" Vanessa arched an eyebrow. "Not even Taylor?" He looked intrigued in spite of himself and she smiled. "She won't give you the time of day, will she? She's so enamored with Kurt that she can't see how much you care about her. It must be maddening to have her so close, day after day, and yet still be so far from being able to act on those feelings. Help me now, and with your son out of the way, you'll have a real shot at changing that. The girl will need a shoulder cry on, after all, and who better than Kurt's own father? It's a win-win for both of us."

Tom took a step back, defiance warring with desire in his eyes. Bile rose in Taylor's stomach as the defiance gradually faded away, shattering every illusion she'd ever had about their relationship. She clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from moaning, from losing the contents of her churning stomach all over the ground at their feet, terrified of what discovery might mean for her. If Tom Weller were capable of this, would he resort to physical violence as well? Was it even safe for her in Clearfield anymore?

"Tell me something," Tom said bitterly. "How did a good man like my son get mixed up with an evil bitch like you?"

Taylor wanted to scream at him for the hypocrisy of _that_ statement. He was bargaining for her like a side of beef and he thought he had the right to pass judgment on the morals of his co-conspirator? Was he really that devoid of conscience?

Vanessa laughed lightly. "Sticks and stones, Mr. Weller. Sticks and stones. Now do we have a deal or not? I do hate to rush you, but we are rather pressed for time here, since our window of opportunity to talk to Taylor alone is rapidly closing."

Tom hesitated. Taylor bit her lip so deeply she drew blood as she awaited his response, still hoping against hope that Vanessa had somehow got it wrong, silently willing him to be the man she thought she knew and call the woman's bluff. When he looked at Vanessa again, she knew she'd lost. "What exactly is it you want me to do?" he asked quietly.

Vanessa smiled triumphantly as she began filling him in on her plan.

* * *

 _Present Day_

"She told him to let her do most of the talking," Taylor said quietly as her focus returned to the present, her shoulders tense as she haltingly finished her narrative. "She mostly wanted him there to lend credence to what she had to say." She took a deep breath as she turned around, her eyes filling with tears at the raw pain in his. "You know the rest."

There were clearly a lot of details still missing, but they were unimportant right now. "Oh, Tee." Kurt crossed the room in four quick strides and took Taylor in his arms, cradling her to his chest, feeling her body shake with silent sobs, unaware that he was crying as well as her tears soaked his shirt. The world around them fell away as the two of them took comfort in one another.

Kurt drew back enough to see Taylor's face when her tremors subsided. "I love you," he told her, meeting her gaze unflinchingly, needing her to know that, as promised, nothing she had told him had changed his feelings for her one iota. He gently swiped at the tear tracks on her cheeks with his thumbs. "How are you doing? I know that couldn't have been easy to talk about."

"It wasn't," she admitted, "but that's mostly because I love you so much. That couldn't have been any easier for you to hear than it was for me to tell. Are you okay?"

"No." Kurt shook his head as he guided her over to the couch and pulled her down onto his lap, holding her tightly all the while. "I think it will be a very long time before I can honestly say I'm _okay_ again, but having you back in my life, having a future with you, makes every bit of what I'm feeling now worth it."

"What are you feeling?" Taylor asked cautiously, curious to hear his reaction to what she had told him. The look on his face when she had first turned around . . . There were no words to describe the devastation she'd seen there.

"Apart from thankful that cancer is killing my father so I don't have to?" Kurt asked ironically.

"Kurt—" Taylor's voice was half reprimand, half plea. She started to lean back so she could see his face, but he tightened his arms around her, holding her in place.

"I'm angry, obviously," Kurt confessed. "Not just at my dad for what he wanted to do, or all the years we've lost together because of his sick plan, but because I didn't see it. I should have protected you and I failed to do that, and I am so, so sorry, Taylor."

She opened her mouth to tell him that he had nothing to be sorry for, that he was in no way to blame, but he rushed on before she could speak.

"At the moment, though . . . at the moment, I'm mostly just relieved. I really thought . . ." He couldn't bring himself to finish that sentence, but he could feel that Taylor understood. "As awful as my dad's actions were, he could have done so much worse and I'm thankful that you haven't had to deal with that." That they wouldn't have to deal with it.

Taylor rested a hand on his chest, comforted by the solid beat of his heart beneath her palm. "What made you suspect your father was . . . molesting me?" She'd been stunned at how close he'd come to the truth. If she hadn't overheard Tom Weller that day . . . If she hadn't run . . .

She very likely would have been his victim.

"I'm not sure I can really pinpoint one exact reason," Kurt said slowly. "I never picked up on anything like what Vanessa saw, at least not consciously, but statistically you had a lot of the risk factors for being victimized. Ironically enough, I think my dad summed it up best. The day you came back, he said that you wouldn't have acted as you did without good reason, and sexual abuse was the only thing I could think of bad enough to prompt such drastic action. And if that was going on, my dad was the obvious choice since he was the only man you were close to. It certainly wouldn't have made sense for you to cut ties with us if he _wasn't_ your abuser."

"I was really hoping he'd find the courage to tell you this himself," Taylor said wistfully. "I thought it might help things between the two of you moving forward if he came clean on his own."

"Why would he?" Kurt snorted. "He probably assumed that the truth died with Vanessa, and if he could just wait me out, Mom and Sarah would convince me to forgive him, since he's dying as well. He has no idea what's in store for him when Mom finds out what he's done."

"Why? What did Maggie say?" Taylor attempted to pull away again and this time Kurt loosened his hold so she could ease back enough to see his face.

"She came to the same conclusion I did about your motives for leaving," Kurt told Taylor. "Only much sooner. She told me the year after you left she point-blank asked my father if he had molested you. She told me he denied it and as far as she could tell, he was being truthful, but she also said if you told us otherwise, she would walk into the police station with us to get charges filed."

"She actually said that?" Taylor had always known that Maggie had an innate sense of justice, but she struggled to wrap her head around the idea that the woman would take a neighbor girl's word over that of her own husband. And to be willing to support her so publicly . . . It was almost too much to take in.

Kurt gently brushed his knuckles against her cheek. "See? I'm not the only Weller who loves you. Mom still thinks of you as a daughter."

Taylor laid her head back on his chest. She thought of Maggie and Sarah as family too, and that reality complicated this whole situation immensely. "So . . . what do we do now, Kurt?"

Kurt tangled his fingers in her hair. "What do you mean?"

"Christmas is almost here, and your father's getting sicker by the day. I've been wondering if maybe we should just . . . keep this all to ourselves. Think about it," she urged as she felt him tense beneath her. "What will telling Maggie and Sarah accomplish at this point, other than spoiling their last holiday with your dad and tarnishing their memories of him forever?"

"They deserve to know the truth," Kurt countered. "I don't think you realize how badly losing you hurt them, Tee. If you withhold this information from them now, you may never be able to repair your relationship with them, and that will hurt _us_." He didn't want to spend the rest of his life playing referee between his wife and mother and sister. "Are you really willing to risk that for a man who's dying anyway and who, in your own words, 'bargained for you like a side of beef?'"

"I hate this," Taylor muttered fiercely. "I hate that no matter which way I turn, I'm faced with an impossible choice when all I want to do is spare everyone even _more_ pain."

"Then don't make that choice," Kurt said slowly as the solution dawned on him.

Taylor blinked at him as she pulled back again. " _What_?"

"Don't make that choice," Kurt repeated. "Let Mom and Sarah make it. Tell them that you're willing to share the other reason why you left, but that it could permanently damage their perception of my father, and let them decide whether or not they want to hear it." He already knew what his mother's choice would be, but he was less certain of Sarah. She had always been her daddy's girl. "That way, you won't be upsetting your own attempts to repair those relationships, but you're also not forcing them to hear something they'll always wish they hadn't."

Taylor cocked her head as she considered the idea. "And if I gave them that option, they could also choose when they wanted to hear it," she said thoughtfully. "Whether they wait until the holidays are over, or after . . . after your dad's gone. That's a really great idea."

"I have one of those every once in a while," Kurt said easily, smiling when she playfully slugged him in the shoulder. "So are we in agreement on how to handle this?"

"We are," Taylor agreed softly, feeling a huge weight lift off her shoulders. "Thank you, Kurt." She held his gaze for a long moment. "I love you."

"My pleasure, Tee." Kurt's eyes dropped to her lips, relishing the hitch in her breathing when she saw where his focus was directed. "I love you, too," he murmured as he leaned in, kissing her forehead, then her cheek, before slowly, deliberately, lowering his mouth to hers.

A knock sounded on the door just as his lips touched hers.


	13. Chapter Twelve

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor groaned when the knock sounded again. So much for her hope that their visitor would go away if they didn't answer the door. "Were you expecting company?" she asked Kurt as she slid off his lap. Anyone looking for her would have gone to her mom's.

"No," Kurt replied, sounding just as perturbed as she felt. He reluctantly got to his feet and headed to the door. Taylor rose as well as she heard him greet their guests. "Hello, Mom. Emma. What an unexpected . . . surprise. Come in."

"Good morning, Kurt," Maggie said as she walked inside, giving him a hug and a quick kiss on the cheek. "I missed you at Mass this morning." She made a beeline for Taylor, hugging her as well. "Morning, Taylor. I stopped by your mom's after church to talk to you, and she said you were out here. I hope we're not interrupting anything."

Taylor glanced at her mother, who gave a subtle shake of her head. So Maggie apparently didn't know that she was living with Kurt now. Terrific. "No, not at all. I, uh . . . I'm afraid I'm the reason Kurt missed church this morning. I had breakfast out here with him, and we started talking, and, well . . ."

"Actually, Mom—" Kurt took pity on Taylor and came up behind her, placing his hands on her shoulders to stop her rambling, "—Taylor's going to be living with me for the remainder of her stay in Clearfield. She moved in yesterday."

"That's wonderful!" Maggie embraced them both warmly. "I'm so happy for the two of you. Emma, why didn't you tell me? I'll make sure to call before I come over from now on," she teased, laughing when Taylor blushed.

"What did you want to talk to me about, Maggie?" Taylor asked quietly once they were all seated.

"I, uh . . . I've been trying to get Tom to explain his actions, like I promised, but he's refusing to even discuss the matter with me any further. I thought maybe knowing the details of what he said and did when he and Vanessa came over to talk to you might give me some leverage to get him to open up. If you don't mind sharing," Maggie added hastily. She knew she was grasping at straws here, but she was desperate to find a way to begin piecing her family back together.

"I don't, but I really can't see how it will help you," Taylor said slowly. "Apart from saying that Vanessa had something important to talk to me about and telling me I'd always be welcome at your house when she finished, he let her do all the talking."

Emma frowned. "When did this talk take place, exactly? I've been thinking back trying to piece together a timeline of events, but I can't seem to make anything fit. At first I assumed it took place the day you begged me to take you back to boarding school early, but I never left the house that day until after you made that request. I would have known if Tom and Vanessa had stopped by. Plus, you came back from wherever you'd run off to after our fight that morning in a frenzy to leave. You did say this talk took place at our house, correct?"

"It did," Taylor confirmed. "And you were right that it happened on the day I asked to go back to school. The reason you can't make events line up is because you're missing a significant piece of the puzzle." She hesitated, glancing at Kurt before continuing. He gave her a reassuring nod and threaded his fingers through hers. "I knew Tom and Vanessa were going to come over, but I was hoping to be able to get out of town before they arrived. That's why I was in such a hurry to leave. I overheard them talking when I ran out of the house after our fight and . . . I know why Tom acted as he did."

"And why is that?" Maggie asked quietly, clenching her hands together tightly in her lap as Kurt and Taylor again exchanged glances. She had been holding out hope that yesterday's revelation was the worst of her husband's misdeeds, but from the looks on their faces, clearly that wasn't the case. She supposed deep down she had always known that hope was misplaced, but her heart sank as she braced herself for the very real possibility that the consequences of those actions would impact her family for years more to come.

"I'll tell you if you really want to know, Maggie," Taylor said at length, "but I think it might be best if you let this go, at least for now. Your family's going through so much right now already, the last thing I want to do is complicate things even further."

Emma frowned. "It seems to me Tom's the one who complicated things. All you're doing by telling the truth is shining a spotlight on his misdeeds, and whether Maggie wants to hear it or not, I very much do." It was long overdue, in her opinion. She should have tried harder to make Taylor tell her the truth years ago, instead of allowing her fear that her daughter would make good on her threats to cut her out of her life if she did so rule her decisions.

"I want to hear it as well," Maggie assured her. She looked back at Taylor. "I appreciate the offer and all you've been doing to make this easier on all of us, but I think the truth has been buried long enough. Tom's dying, and whatever he's done, I want the opportunity to look him in the eye and ask why."

"Okay." Taylor blew out a breath as she got to her feet and walked to the window. As she'd suspected, her mother's car was in the driveway. She walked over to her and held out a hand. "But first, Mom, you're going to have to give me your car keys." The last thing she needed was to have to bail her mother out of jail for tearing out of here and going after Tom Weller with a baseball bat. She was going to have to be very calm before Taylor let her leave.

Emma quirked an eyebrow. "That bad, huh?" she asked as she placed the key ring in Taylor's hand, feeling for all the world like the child rather than the parent, but determined to humor her daughter.

Taylor closed her hand tightly around the keys as she sat back down next to Kurt. He covered her clenched fist with his hand and gently uncurled her fingers, taking the keys from her and placing them in his pocket before returning his hand to hers. She took a deep breath, comforted by his touch, and launched into her story for the second time that day. The room was so silent you could've heard a pin drop when she finished, but not for long.

"Son of a bitch!" Emma exploded as she surged to her feet and paced the room with quick, angry steps, so enraged she was shaking. All these years that sanctimonious bastard had been pretending to occupy the moral high ground, looking down his nose at her and Taylor for the pain they were causing his family, when all along he was the _real_ source of it. Her stomach lurched as the reality of what he had wanted to do to her daughter began to sink in. "That low-down, perverted, lying piece of shi—"

"Mom!" Taylor interrupted hastily with a pointed look at her other guest. Maggie's face had grown increasingly pale as she spoke and her eyes were suspiciously bright. She might have shared Kurt's concerns about Tom's conduct, but she clearly hadn't been prepared to have those suspicions confirmed.

"It's all right, Taylor," Maggie said quietly. "Given what you just told us, I can't say I disagree with Emma, but I have to ask: are you absolutely sure that Tom was going to . . . that he would have . . ."

"I'm absolutely convinced that he wanted to." Taylor met Maggie's gaze steadily. "Obviously I can't say for certain whether he would have gone through with it or not, but he started getting more affectionate with me after Sarah left for college. I didn't think anything of it at the time because he never touched me anywhere inappropriate, but—"

"—he was grooming you," Kurt finished grimly, pulling Taylor more tightly to him as if to ward off a threat that was no longer present, wishing once more that his father's illness didn't preclude him from beating the hell out of him. "What happened after you heard Da—heard my father and Vanessa talking?" He refused to give that man the title of _Dad_ any longer. Dads cared about their children, and his had clearly only ever thought of himself.

"After . . . after I was sure they'd had time to get back in the house, I scurried down the tree and ran like hell for home." She looked at Emma. "You must have thought I was crazy, bursting in like that and demanding to go back to school immediately when not an hour before I was begging to stay here in Clearfield."

Emma shook her head. "I thought . . . I assumed that you'd had some kind of run-in with Kurt and Vanessa and my plan had worked. It wasn't until I started getting feedback from your teachers a few weeks later about how dramatically your attitude had changed that I started to question that belief."

"What sort of changes in behavior are we talking about?" the mother in Maggie wanted to know.

Emma glanced at Taylor, who shrugged, conceding the question to her. "They said she had a huge chip on her shoulder and was focused on her schoolwork and extracurricular activities almost to the point of excess. They felt she was overextending herself to avoid dealing with an issue that was really troubling her, but I honestly thought it was her way of dealing with missing Kurt, and I dismissed their concerns." She wished more than anything now that she had questioned it further. She could have saved them all years of heartache.

"It's hard for me to imagine you like that," Kurt commented to Taylor.

Taylor laid her head on his shoulder. "I was an angry sixteen-year-old. You wouldn't have liked me much back then."

"I find that hard to believe, Tee," Kurt reassured her with a gentle kiss to her forehead. "But even if I didn't like you very much in the moment, I would _always_ have loved you. I should have driven to that school years ago and refused to leave until you talked to me." His deal with Emma be damned.

"That . . . would not have gone well," Taylor said with a humorless laugh. "At the time, I felt even more betrayed by you than I did your father. You'd promised me I would always be your number one girl, and then you got involved with another girl who not only didn't want us to be friends anymore, she was willing to use me as a bargaining chip to a potential pedophile to ensure that outcome. Deep down, I always knew you wouldn't have condoned her actions, but it took me a long time to realize that I was holding onto my anger against you so I wouldn't have to deal with the pain of missing you so damn much."

Kurt sucked in a breath as Taylor's words sank in, as he got a fresh glimpse at his role in the hell she had endured. "I would have understood, Tee," he said in a voice that wasn't quite steady. "When you told me what had happened . . ."

Taylor shook her head. "I wouldn't have told you the truth, not back then. When she came over to talk to me, Vanessa implied that she would rather have an abortion than raise her child in a broken home where its parents were always fighting. No matter how angry I was, I would never have risked costing you a child you were looking forward to by coming clean."

"Of course she did," Emma muttered in disgust. "That girl really covered all her bases to make sure you had no one to turn to, didn't she?"

Maggie frowned. "I'm still not sure I understand why you didn't come to me or your mother. I can appreciate you not wanting to do anything to jeopardize Kurt's unborn child, but to my mind, that's a completely separate issue from Tom's behavior. We could have found a way to protect you from him without causing Vanessa to do something rash if we'd put our heads together." If Taylor had just trusted them.

"She didn't tell me because we'd been fighting like cats and dogs about her going back to school, and she thought I'd use this as fresh ammunition to win the argument," Emma surmised as her eyes met her daughter's. "Isn't that right, Taylor?" She rubbed her arms as if to ward off the chill that had settled into her bones. Tom Weller might be everything she had called him and worse, but she was by no means blameless in this situation. She had alienated her child to the point that when Taylor was faced with the worst crisis of her young life, she had felt unable to confide in her.

"No! No, that's not it at all, Mom," Taylor hastily corrected her. "At that point, I _wanted_ to go back to school. If I was going to tell anyone what was going on back then, it _would_ have been you. No matter how much we fought, I always knew that you wanted the best for me and would protect me with everything in you. And that's exactly why I didn't come to you with this. If I had, you would have marched straight over to the Wellers and raised hell, and I wasn't willing to risk that, given what Vanessa had threatened."

Taylor swallowed hard as her eyes met Maggie's. "As for why I didn't tell you . . . How exactly is a fifteen-year-old girl supposed to tell the woman who's been like a second mother to her that her husband is . . . interested in her in that way? As much as _I_ felt betrayed by him, I also felt that I had betrayed _you_ , that I must have done something to make the man you loved look at _me_ in that light. And it wasn't as if I had any proof. I couldn't have told you how I knew that without involving Vanessa and risking Kurt's unborn child, and even if you'd believed me and confronted her and Tom, they could have simply denied everything."

Maggie's eyes filled with tears as she held Taylor's gaze. "I'm sure they would have," she agreed wearily after a long moment, "but I would have believed you, Taylor. I'd known you since you were a baby, and you were the most scrupulously honest child I've ever met. You never hesitated to own up to your misdeeds, and you never made up stories. You certainly wouldn't have had anything to gain and everything to lose by telling me this if it wasn't true. And it goes without saying, that none of this— _none of this_ —was in _any_ way your fault. You didn't betray me, Taylor. Tom's the only one guilty of that."

The silence that descended on the room was almost deafening. The two women gazed at one another for a beat longer, and then, as if on cue, they leaped to their feet and rushed into one another's arms, their tears flowing freely as the lost years finally, fully, fell away.

"If Tom weren't dying, I'd divorce him," Maggie told Taylor when they eventually separated.

Emma snorted. "If Tom weren't dying, you wouldn't have to worry about divorcing him. I'd take care of that little problem for you for free." She shot Taylor a stern look before her daughter could scold her and then softened, getting to her feet and enveloping her in a fierce hug. "Don't worry. You're an adult now, and I'll follow your and Kurt's lead in dealing with this situation." She leaned in close to whisper in Taylor's ear, "You might want to give Kurt a hug as well. He's looked like a kicked puppy since you said you were mad at him too back then."

Taylor instantly turned back to Kurt, who was standing now as well, wearing the exact expression her mother had described, and threw her arms around his neck. "I love you," she told him, making no effort to mute her voice to keep the declaration between them. "I love you so much, and you've made me happier the past few days than I knew it was possible to be, so don't you dare blame yourself for what happened, Kurt Weller. It wasn't your fault any more than it was mine."

Kurt's face held a mixture of hope and disbelief. "It was, though. If I had been more careful in choosing a girl to bring with me . . . If I had questioned Vanessa more closely . . ." Or stood firm against Emma's request in the first place. "None of this would have happened."

"No, it wouldn't," Taylor allowed. "Something much worse probably would have. Your father's interest in me didn't stem from Vanessa's visit, Kurt. He wanted me long before you brought her here, and he might well have succeeded if not for you. You _saved_ me from being molested! If you're going to take responsibility for anything in the past, that should be it. It's certainly all I'm going to remember.

"You—" she framed his jaw in her hands and leaned up to give him a gentle kiss, "you are my hero, and my best friend, and the love of my life, and I thank god every day that things worked out exactly as they did, because I don't think we'd be standing here together now if they hadn't." Their love was strong, but she wasn't sure even it could have survived her being sexually assaulted by his father.

"Oh, I think we would be," Kurt contradicted. "Don't sell us short, Tee. I think we both know what we have is rare, and we would have fought for it."

She smiled up at him, both acknowledging the truth in the other's words, as he gently brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. The two of them continued gazing into one another's eyes, oblivious to their audience grinning at them, until Maggie cleared her throat. "So . . . have you two lovebirds given any thought to how we go forward from here? I guess I don't need to ask if you'll reconsider coming over for Christmas dinner."

"Absolutely not," Kurt responded automatically, authoritatively. There was no way he was going to subject Taylor to his father for one more minute now that he knew the truth. Given what he'd suspected, he never should have invited her over to his parents' house in the first place. It violated every rule in the book to put a victim face-to-face with their abuser. "I meant what I said yesterday. Unless and until my father can look me in the eye and give me some answers, I want nothing more to do with him."

"Maybe we could have our own Christmas dinner here later in the day," Taylor suggested. She personally had no problem facing down Tom Weller, but she knew it was too much to ask of Kurt at this point. In his present mood, their presence there would inevitably spoil the meal for the rest of the family. "If you don't mind cooking, that is," she said to Kurt and got a nod in return. "You do still have yours around noon, Maggie?"

Maggie hesitated. "Yes. It's a good idea, Taylor, but Tom isn't well enough to be left alone anymore. One of us would have to stay at home."

"No need for that," Emma interposed. "I'm sure Mrs. Jenkins would be more than happy to do her Christian duty and sit with him for a few hours." She looked at Maggie. "You'll have to ask her, though. I'm afraid I'm off her Christmas card list for condoning my daughter's heathenish behavior the other day."

"What did you do?" Maggie asked Taylor.

Taylor grinned ruefully. "I kissed Kurt on Mom's front lawn." Although technically, he had been the one to instigate it, so she wasn't quite sure why she was the only one coming under fire for it.

"The horror." Maggie shuddered theatrically. "Okay, I'll make nice to Mrs. Jenkins." She and Kurt spent several minutes discussing menus in order to avoid having the same dishes at both meals.

Emma looked around as they talked. "You need a Christmas tree," she announced when they finished. "And some decorations. Where's your Christmas spirit? I talked to Max Harper after church this morning, and he mentioned that he still had a couple trees left." Max ran the local Christmas tree lot. "I told him I might know someone who could use one, and he said to give him a call if you wanted to swing by and pick one up this afternoon. Here—" she pulled his business card out of her purse along with the velvet pouch containing Taylor's present for the day, "this will get the two of you started."

Taylor sucked in a breath as she opened the bag and pulled out a heart-shaped ornament, the inscription bringing tears to her eyes. "Our First Christmas. Kurt & Taylor. 2015," she read. She glanced up at Kurt, who had been reading over her shoulder and looked just as stunned as she felt, though probably not for the same reason. A personalized ornament like this would have had to been ordered weeks ago. Once again, her mother's gift had taken either incredible optimism or a foreknowledge that things would work out that it didn't seem possible for her to have possessed.

"It's beautiful, Emma," Kurt said. "Thank you so much." He nudged Taylor, who was still staring at it in speechless stupefaction.

"Yeah, thanks, Mom," Taylor agreed hastily, gently handing the ornament to Kurt before giving her mother a warm hug. No matter how it came to be, it was still one of the nicest gifts she had ever received.

"You're very welcome, you two. Now," Emma added in a no-nonsense tone, "give me back my car keys so we can get out of here and you two can go get those Christmas decorations. I expect this place to look festive when I come back on Wednesday."

"Yes, ma'am," Kurt said, grinning at Taylor as he fished her mom's keys out of his pocket and handed them over. He embraced both women, squeezing his mother extra tightly, whispering _I love you_ in her ear before letting her go.

Maggie hugged him back just as fiercely, returning the sentiment. She pulled Taylor into her arms next. "Take good care of my boy," she whispered, stepping back as Taylor nodded. "Sarah said to tell you she'll be ready any time after 7:30 in the morning."

That was hardly Taylor's definition of _early_ , but after hearing Kurt's description of shopping with his sister, she was no longer so eager to get going. Plus, it would give her more time with Kurt in the morning, and she had a feeling she might need it, now that the truth was out in the open. "Let her know I'll pick her up about 7:45 then."

"Will do," Maggie promised. They all walked out onto the porch together and she looked back at Kurt as she descended the steps. "This one's definitely a keeper, son. You might want to consider putting a ring on it before someone else snatches her up."

Kurt automatically pulled Taylor to him as if to claim her as his to men who weren't even present, and Emma laughed all the way to the car.

She couldn't wait to officially claim him as her son-in-law.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter. It may be a while before I get the next chapter up as well, as I have a busy couple of weeks coming up, but I'll do my best to update as quickly as possible.

* * *

"A little more to the left," Taylor instructed, head cocked and hands on her hips, pretending not to notice Kurt's good-natured exasperation as he and Matt shifted the tree back to where it had been a few moments ago.

She was doing this on purpose, Kurt realized as he saw the amusement dancing in her green eyes. "That's great, Matt, thank you," he said just as she was opening her mouth to suggest they move it again.

Taylor grinned impishly as Kurt frowned at her in mock exasperation. "What?" she asked innocently. "I just want our first Christmas tree together to be perfect."

He crossed the room to her in three quick strides and pulled her into his arms, tickling her lightly to repay her for that little trick, and she squirmed helplessly as she laughed up at him. Matt shook his head as he watched the two of them. "I guess I'd better tell Jenny to start shopping for a dress," he said.

"A dress?" Taylor was confused. What on earth did Matt's wife need a dress for?

"To wear to your wedding," Matt clarified. "Since if what Sarah told me when I dropped Sawyer off on Saturday is correct, you apparently moved in together after one date." He could see by their faces that it was. "That being the case, I figure wedding bells can't be too far off."

"In my defense, he and my mom did gang up on me," Taylor confided to Matt. "He gave me a key to his place and Mom packed up all my stuff while we were out on our date. I didn't mind too much though, since he promised me unlimited hot tub use and home-cooked meals." She smiled up at Kurt to let him know she was teasing.

Matt walked over to them and made a show of checking out the bare ring finger on Taylor's left hand. "Her mom _encouraged_ her to move in with you and you haven't put a ring on it yet?" he asked in disbelief.

Kurt grinned at his friend. "Believe it or not, you're not the first person to ask me that today," he admitted.

"Who was the first?" Matt wanted to know. "Taylor's mom?"

"Mine, actually," Kurt told him. "She said I'd better see to it before some other guy snatched her up." Just like earlier when his mom had told him that, he pulled Taylor tightly to him, resting his chin on top of her head.

"Don't worry," Taylor reassured him. "I promise to give you first chance at me." First, last and every chance.

"It's good advice, though," Matt spoke up. "Trust me, you don't know how lucky you are to have a potential mother-in-law who approves of you. My in-laws' didn't even want to let Jenny go with me after I said _I do_. Take my advice and make it very clear Taylor's off the market ASAP."

"I suppose we _could_ stop at the jewelry counter and look at rings while we're at the store," Taylor kidded Kurt.

"What makes you think I don't already have one?" He smiled down at her, relishing the look of surprise she shot him as she turned in his arms, her mouth dropping open. He'd come across the infinity design emerald and diamond engagement ring entirely by chance years ago and purchased it on the spot. He'd known it was perfect for her the moment he laid eyes on it, and he couldn't wait to see her face when he placed it on her finger. _Soon_ , he promised himself.

"Well, it looks like you have everything under control here," Matt said, backing toward the door as the two got lost in one another's eyes once more. "I'll, uh . . . I'll just let myself out."

"Thanks, Matt." Kurt spoke without taking his eyes off Taylor as the two of them shared an entire conversation without uttering a word. "I appreciate all your help . . . and the advice."

"Anytime, buddy." Matt started to step outside, but paused in the doorway. "Maybe the four of us could get together for dinner after the holidays." He knew Jenny was going to want to meet the woman who had finally won Kurt Weller's heart. He'd long since given up hope that his perpetually single friend would ever look at a woman the way he was currently gazing at Taylor.

Kurt finally tore his eyes from Taylor's, taking hold of her hand as they turned to face Matt. "Definitely. Give me a call after Christmas, and we'll work something out." They said their goodbyes and watched as Matt got in his vehicle and drove away, waiting until he was out of sight before turning back to one another, drawn together like magnets in a force field.

Taylor rose up on her tiptoes to kiss Kurt just as he lowered his head to claim her lips. She moaned softly as his tongue tangled with hers, sliding her hands around to his back to pull him to her until there was no space left between them, needing to feel the evidence of his desire for her, the reassurance of his love for her after all she had divulged to him this morning.

"Tee," he murmured softly when they finally broke apart for air. Her green eyes were glazed with passion, her lips swollen, and it was all he could do not to scoop her up in his arms and carry her to their bedroom to finally, fully, make her his. "God, I want you."

"What's stopping you?" she gasped as he nuzzled a particularly sensitive spot at the base of her neck.

He loved how responsive she was. "Christmas decorations," he reminded himself as much as her, groaning when the shiver that racked her body caused her to rock her hips into his. He took a deep breath and stepped back a fraction, hands coming to rest on her shoulders to keep her from molding her body to his once more.

He smiled as the frustrated look she shot him exactly mirrored his own feelings. "I know, Tee. _I know_. But once I make love to you, I don't want you leaving my bed for the rest of the night. So let's go to the store and pick up what we need, and once we're done decorating, we'll pick up where we just left off. If you want to, that is," he added hastily, not wanting her to feel he was pressuring her into something she wasn't ready for yet.

"I do," Taylor assured him softly. "Very much." She sighed. "I don't suppose we could just tell my mom that we got too distracted practicing for those grandchildren she says she wants to get around to the decorating."

Kurt laughed as he leaned in for another quick kiss. "As long as you were willing to be the one to tell her that, I'd be seriously tempted to take you up on that if I hadn't seen how your eyes lit up at the idea of decorating for the holidays." He knew she'd regret it later if she didn't take advantage of the opportunity, and they were running out of time. Taylor had her shopping trip with Sarah tomorrow, and he had a lot of work to do in the next day and a half in order to take off early on Christmas Eve.

"You're right," Taylor acknowledged. "I haven't decorated a Christmas tree in years." Not since she'd left Clearfield, in fact. Her mother had occasionally suggested that she at least get a pre-lit, store-bought one, but she had never felt festive enough to do so. Now that her Christmas cheer had returned, she certainly didn't want to miss out on the opportunity to celebrate the holiday to its fullest with Kurt. "I'm really looking forward to doing it again. With you."

"Then let's get to it," Kurt said, retrieving Taylor's coat from the back of the couch and helping her into it before shrugging into his own. He picked up her keys and handed them to her. "We'd better take your SUV. I want to pick up some things for our Christmas dinner as well, so we'll need the extra room."

She handed the keys back to him as they walked out the door. "You can drive." She didn't let many people drive her vehicle, preferring to remain in control, but at the moment she was more inclined to keep her eyes on him than the road.

"Can I ask you a question, Tee?" Kurt asked, glancing over at her as he turned onto the highway.

"Of course," Taylor responded, surprised he even felt he needed to ask. She was pretty much an open book with him at this point.

He hesitated. "I've been wondering why you never developed a long-term relationship with any of the guys you dated, why you never . . ."

"Slept with any of them?" Taylor supplied when Kurt trailed off.

"I realize it's really none of my business, but it's hard for me to understand why someone as kind and warmhearted as you apparently walled themselves off from experiencing love. Was that because of my father as well?"

"If it's anyone's business, it's yours, Kurt," Taylor reassured him. "You can ask me anything you want. I'm done keeping secrets from you. And to answer your question, yes, I suppose your father's actions played a big part in why I acted as I did. And you did as well."

"Me?" Kurt frowned as he glanced over at her once more. "How did I factor into that? The only thing I would have wanted for you—the only thing I've _ever_ wanted—was for you to be happy, Tee." As painful as imagining her in a loving relationship with another man had been, he would still infinitely prefer that alternate reality to the actual hell she had been through.

"I know that, Kurt." Taylor turned in her seat to face him. "And I know it bothered you earlier when I said I'd been angry at you, but I'm not implying you did anything wrong." Quite the opposite actually. "My feelings had less to do with your actions and everything to do with who you were as a person. Who you were to me."

She saw by his face that he didn't understand. "Kurt," she said gently, "I fell in love with you when I was seven years old. From the time I was old enough to understand the birds and the bees, I assumed you would be my first. I had this whole romantic fantasy that you would notice me one day when I got old enough, and it would be this magical experience."

"Tee, first times can be—"

"Messy and awkward and painful," she interrupted with a slight laugh. "I know. I didn't expect it not to be all of those things, but I still thought it would be special because I was with the best friend I'd loved all my life."

"And now you will be," Kurt said softly.

"Yeah." Taylor smiled a little. "It's funny how things have come full circle. I gave up that dream when I left Clearfield, but I was still determined to only be with someone I saw myself having future with. By the time I'd gotten past what happened enough to be interested in dating, though, I'd put up such high walls around my heart to protect myself from getting hurt again that no one could get close." Her eyes softened as they met Kurt's. "Until now."

Kurt sucked in a breath. "Every time I think I have a handle on how hard this was for you, you reveal another aspect to the situation that I haven't thought of."

Taylor's eyes narrowed. "What about how hard it was for you?" she asked as realization began to sink in. She had been so focused on getting through telling her story, so distracted by her newfound relationship with Kurt, and he so concerned on helping her through her pain, that they hadn't addressed how her actions back then had affected him. "I can't imagine how awful it must have been for you to lose someone you loved without ever knowing why." God, how could he still love her after all she had put him through?

Kurt gave her hand a gentle squeeze as he pulled into a parking spot. "That was all forgotten the moment I laid eyes on you again."

"Kurt—" Taylor wasn't about to let him shrug this off as if his feelings weren't every bit as important as hers. They both needed to put all the emotions of the past to bed in order to fully move forward.

"We'll talk about it, Tee," Kurt promised. "Just not today. I think we've had enough serious discussions for one day." He flashed her a boyish grin as he unfastened his seatbelt, and she followed suit. "Now . . . let's go pick out the perfect ornaments to make one awesome tree."

Taylor scrambled out of the SUV and grinned up at him as he grabbed her hand the moment she reached his side. She leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked into the store. "I was thinking maybe a wreath for the front door too," she commented. "But no mistletoe. Mom would definitely find a way to embarrass us with that."

"No mistletoe," Kurt agreed, turning his head so Taylor wouldn't see his smile. Knowing Emma as he did, he suspected that if they didn't hang any, some would magically appear, but he saw no reason to spoil her fun by forewarning Taylor. He was going to take the day as it came and enjoy every minute of it.

Thirty minutes later, their cart was full to the brim with an array of ornaments and decorations and tinsel, the wreath they had squabbled over good-naturedly before finally settling on laying on top. "I think we're ready to get groceries now," she announced as she stared at the overfull basket. "Since that's more your department, why don't I pay for this stuff and take it out to the car while you get started?"

"Sure," Kurt said agreeably, turning the shopping cart toward the front of the store. He fished his wallet out of his pocket as he steered the cart toward the front of the store and held out his debit card. "Here. Put it on this."

"That's not necessary, Kurt," Taylor began to protest. "I can—"

"I want to," he interrupted, pressing the card into her hand and kissing her furrowed brow. "Let me spoil you a little, Tee, please. I know federal agents don't make all that much money, and you'll no doubt spend an exorbitant amount on your little shopping spree tomorrow. What's mine will be yours soon enough anyway." Already was, as far as he was concerned.

They were clearly going to have to have a talk about her finances, but this was not the time or the place to announce that her net worth was in the millions. Besides, when he was looking at her like that, with his heart in his eyes, there was no way she could resist. "Okay," she agreed, "as long as I get to spoil you in return. Which means you don't get to say a word about however many Christmas presents I choose to get you," she specified, grinning up at him as they approached the registers.

Kurt frowned down at her in mock annoyance. "You drive a hard bargain, Miss Shaw, but all right." He bent down to whisper his pin number in her ear and couldn't resist stealing a quick kiss when she instinctively leaned in to him before heading off to get another cart.

Suddenly anxious to have this shopping trip over with and their decorating done so they could get back to . . . more pleasurable activities, Taylor hurried through checkout and loaded their purchases into her SUV as quickly as possible. She jogged back into the store and started looking for Kurt, finally finding him in the baking aisle. He was apparently just as eager to get home, because he had filled the cart in a remarkably short period of time, especially given the crowd today.

Kurt had just finished putting several bags of flour and sugar in the cart as Taylor approached and he smiled at her curiosity when he added powdered sugar to the basket as well. "We're going to make Christmas cookies when I get home from work Tuesday," he told her, leading her to the display of sprinkles and colored frostings. "Pick out what you like."

She chose several different colors of each, Kurt adding his own favorites to her selection until he was finally satisfied they had enough. "That should do it, unless there's something else you need."

 _Just you_. Taylor bit back the response that was on the tip of her tongue, but if the heated look he gave her was any indication, he'd read her thoughts. He looped his arm through hers as he maneuvered the cart through the crowded store toward the registers as quickly as possible. In a remarkably short period of time, they had paid for the remainder of their items and were on their way home, Kurt driving as fast as reasonably possible.

They unloaded their purchases and after putting the groceries away, dove right into decorating the tree. It took them longer than it should have, since both were easily distracted by the other, but eventually they were ready to hang the final ornament.

Taylor reached for Kurt's hand as she picked up the ornament her mother had given them this morning and they carefully placed it on the tree together. "It's perfect," she announced, stepping back to admire their handiwork.

"Absolutely breathtaking," Kurt agreed as he pulled Taylor into his arms, making it clear that he wasn't talking about the tree. He lowered his head slowly, drawing out the anticipation, before claiming her mouth with his. He kept the kiss light, teasing, at first, but the passion between them quickly escalated.

Taylor molded her body to Kurt's, pouring every ounce of herself into the kiss, relishing the fact that there were no longer any secrets between them, no interruptions, nothing holding them back this time. Her hands slid around to his back and beneath his shirt, feeling his muscles flex beneath her fingertips as she tugged him impossibly closer, and he groaned into her mouth.

Kurt didn't miss a beat as they broke the kiss, following through on his earlier impulse to scoop her up and carry her down the hall to their bedroom. He set her on her feet at the foot of the bed and gently framed her jaw in his hands. "Are you sure you're ready to—"

Taylor stepped back and pulled her sweater over her head as Kurt spoke, choosing to answer him with actions rather than words. She had donned one of the lingerie sets her mother had given her in anticipation of this moment, and she smiled as Kurt's eyes darkened, his appreciative perusal giving her the courage to reach for the button on her jeans and shimmy out of them as well.

The sight of Taylor all but naked before him spurred Kurt out of his trance and he shed his own shirt and pants before catching her up in his arms once more and laying her gently on the bed. She immediately reached for him as he lowered himself down next to her, and he claimed her lips again, pleased to feel no hesitation, no uncertainty, nothing but love and trust and anticipation of what was about to happen between them. He smiled down at her when he finally broke the kiss, deftly reaching behind her to unclasp her bra.

Taylor raised up enough to shrug the garment off her shoulders, tossing it aside without tearing her gaze from Kurt's, tears springing to her eyes at the awe on his face. He tenderly brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear as he kissed his way down her neck to her breasts, and she closed her eyes as he gently sucked her nipple into his mouth, sending jolts of electricity straight to her core. "Oh god," she panted as her back arched off the bed. They had barely gotten started and already she knew that she would never have enough of this. Never have enough of _him_.

Kurt laughed against her skin as he switched from one breast to the other, taking one of her hands in his as his free hand caressed her body, gradually wandering lower and lower until he reached the little scrap of lace covering the heart of her. He hooked a finger in the damp fabric and pulled it gently down her legs and tossed it to the side. He brought his hand back up to her hip, but he didn't immediately resume his ministrations, taking a long moment to drink in the beauty of Taylor completely bare before him.

Taylor opened her eyes when she felt Kurt's gaze lingering on her, wanting not just his eyes on her but his hands and mouth as well. "Why'd you stop?" she demanded in frustration, appreciating the care he was taking with her but needing an outlet for the sensations he had evoked in her. She might be new at this, but she was anxious to experience it. Patience had never been her strong suit, and she had waited long enough.

Kurt chuckled as he leaned in to kiss away her frown, but his laughter quickly turned into a groan when she pulled her hand free of his and began roaming them across his chest, using her keen observational skills to catalog the spots that made him gasp and shiver, lingering on those until he began exploring her body similarly. He longed to follow the path of his hand with his lips, to kiss and caress every inch of her, and he would, he promised himself, just not this time. He couldn't bear to give up his bird's-eye view of her as she experienced this pleasure for the first time.

Taylor fought to keep her eyes open as Kurt finally, _finally_ , returned his hand to where she needed him most and gently slipped one finger inside her, then another, stroking her with uncanny precision, fanning the flames that had been smoldering for days into a raging inferno. " _Kurt_." Her voice was breathy, desperate, her eyes unfocused, as her body strained toward an end she couldn't yet comprehend. The desire coursing through her was almost frightening in its intensity.

"I've got you, Tee," Kurt reassured her as her hips began rocking into his hand in earnest. "I'm here. Just let go." He moved his fingers faster, deeper, his thumb circling her sensitive nub, and she closed her eyes as the sensations became too intense to fight anymore, surrendering to the pleasure with a startled cry. He propped himself up on one elbow and continued moving his fingers at a slower pace, drawing it out for her, until she came back to earth, her green eyes warming as they opened to find his face inches from hers, his other hand gently stroking her temple.

"Hi," Taylor murmured, suddenly shy, feeling ridiculous for greeting him that way but unable to think of anything else to say. "That was . . ." She struggled in vain to find a word to describe the amazing experience he'd just provided her. _Wow_ didn't seem like an adequate enough term to describe how completely he'd just rocked her world. And that was just the prelude.

Kurt kissed her forehead as he withdrew his fingers and pulled her to him, biting back a groan as their bare skin came into contact for the first time. He gently rubbed a hand up and down her spine, waiting until her breathing and heart rate returned to normal before capturing her mouth once more.

Taylor shifted closer to him, feeling him hard against her as their bodies aligned, his underwear now the only barrier between them. It was time that barrier was removed, she decided as her hands once more roamed down his chest. "Make love to me, Kurt," she whispered, hesitating only a moment before slipping her hands beneath the waistband of his boxers, tentatively taking him in her hands.

She was going to be the death of him, Kurt thought, as Taylor amazed and delighted him with her fearlessness once more. There was certainly nothing awkward or messy about this encounter so far. He endured the exquisite torture for as long as he could before gently reaching down and removing her hands. He sat up and yanked his boxers off, dropping them next to her discarded underwear before reaching into the nightstand drawer for a condom. He smiled as he met her frankly curious gaze as she studied him. "Don't want to take a chance on getting started on those babies until we're ready for them."

"We won't be," Taylor said automatically. "I'm on birth control." She shrugged at the questioning look he gave her. "I know I haven't been . . . with anyone, but given the risks of my job, I thought it was better safe than sorry." She'd worked behind enemy lines more than once in the Navy, and who knew what one of the hostage takers she met on the worst day of their lives might take it into their heads to do to her?

"Are you saying . . ." Kurt had to clear his throat twice before going on. "Are you saying you don't want me to use protection? Because a few days ago you said that you didn't want kids right away, that you wanted time for just the two of us, and I'm sure you're aware that the pill isn't one hundred percent effective."

"I know." Taylor met his searching gaze steadily. "But it has a very small rate of failure when used properly, which I have. So I guess what I'm saying is . . . it's up to you whether you want to use protection or not."

"And if we're in that very small rate of failure?" he asked, wanting to be sure that she had thought this through completely and it wasn't just a spur-of-the-moment utterance brought on by the lingering euphoria of her earlier orgasm.

Taylor was silent for a long moment. "In the unlikely event that were to happen, I would think it must be meant to be." She reached up to cup Kurt's jaw before going on. "I want children, Kurt. I want _your_ children. And if that happens sooner than we plan for, it won't be any less of a blessing than if we had chosen the time." She smiled slightly as she met his eyes. "The decision's yours."

"That will make this a first for me as well, then," Kurt said as he tossed the condom back in the drawer. He'd never slept with a woman without protection before, but it was fitting that he was going to share the novelty of this experience with Taylor. "You're sure?" he asked one more time, and when she nodded, he gently rolled her beneath him, settling into the cradle of her thighs as her legs instinctively parted for him.

Taylor kept her eyes locked on Kurt's as he slowly began guiding himself into her, pausing frequently to allow her to adjust, and took a deep breath once he was fully inside, the brief pain giving way to an incredible fullness. Nothing in the world could have prepared her for how it would feel to be so intimately connected to her best friend, to the love of her life. She could see the strain it was taking on him to remain still for her and she reached for his hand, interlacing their fingers tightly as she rocked her hips into his experimentally, moaning when the movement brought nothing but pleasure.

"Okay?" Kurt asked, and when Taylor nodded, he began moving slowly, pulling most of the way out before sliding back into her, setting a gentle pace to give her time to acclimate to him fully, wanting to make this union as memorable as he could for her, as special as she had dreamed. "God, you're beautiful," he ground out as she smiled up at him with such love and trust in her eyes that he couldn't resist leaning down to kiss her.

Taylor gasped into Kurt's mouth as he began thrusting deeper inside her, though still agonizingly slowly, and desire began to coil low in her belly once more. She struggled to find words to return the compliment, to tell him how amazing he was making her feel, how loved and desired, but all she could manage were breathy gasps, strangled moans. She let go of his hand, and ran hers down his back, gripping his ass tightly as he drove her steadily toward that pinnacle of pleasure once more.

Kurt clenched his jaw as he picked up the pace, Taylor's whimpers driving him to the edge as much as the feel of her wet heat surrounding him like a glove. He had wanted to draw this out far longer, wanted it never to end, but her breathing told him she was getting close as well, and he reached a hand between them and pressed his fingers against her, wanting them to reach the finish together. "Come for me, Tee," he half-commanded, half-pleaded, and that was all it took.

Taylor cried out Kurt's name as she came so hard she saw stars, and he thrust into her one more time before he exploded inside her, collapsing onto her and burying his face in the hollow of her neck. She laughed for the sheer joy of it even as tears trailed down her cheeks, tightening her hold on him when he would have lifted himself off her, loving the feeling of him covering her like a blanket. "Love you," she murmured when she could finally draw breath to speak, turning her head with an effort to kiss his stubbled cheek.

Kurt drew back just enough to see her face, resting his weight on his forearms, and pressed chaste kisses to her forehead, her cheek, her lips, tears leaking from his eyes as well. "I love you too, Tee," he told her as he smiled down at her, bringing his hands up to smooth the damp tendrils of hair back from her forehead, the tear tracks from her cheeks. "Happy tears?" he asked her.

"Very happy," Taylor assured him. "That was . . ." She struggled to find words to describe how incredible this experience had been for her, how amazing he had made her feel, without success. "Is it always like that?" she finally asked.

"It will be for us, Tee." Kurt was certain of it. He attempted to lift himself off her again, and this time she loosened her hold enough to let him. He smiled when she moaned softly as he slipped out of her, feeling the same sense of loss, and pulled her with him as he rolled onto his back, reversing their positions. He was silent for a long moment. "For what it's worth, this is the best it's ever been for me as well. I was sure we'd be good together, but none of my imaginings even came close to the reality."

Taylor smiled, warmed by Kurt's confession, but it quickly faded. "Sometimes it scares me how good this is," she admitted "How easy this relationship has been so far. I hate to admit it, but there's a part of me that can't help but wonder when the other shoe will drop. I almost feel like I'm in a dream that I'm terrified I'm going to wake up from."

Kurt gently trailed his fingers up and down her spine. "The morning after you came back to Clearfield, I woke up feeling that exact same way. I don't think I drew a full breath from the time I opened my eyes until I got to your mom's house and saw your SUV in her driveway. I know how you feel, Tee, but have you ever considered that it's easy now because after all this time apart, we both understand that we're stronger together and we're willing to do whatever is necessary to remain that way?"

Taylor's smile bloomed again as she shifted her head on Kurt's chest until she could hear his heartbeat strong and steady beneath her ear. "How is it that you always know exactly what to say to make me feel better?" she asked as the sound lulled her back to her drowsily contented state.

"That's what partners are for, Tee," Kurt told her as he rolled them onto their sides, getting them into a comfortable sleeping position, still firmly tangled up in one another. He continued stroking her back until her even breathing told him she was asleep. "That's what partners are for," he murmured again as he followed her into slumber.

Neither of them moved an inch all night.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Sarah was standing on the Wellers' front porch when Taylor arrived to pick her up for their shopping excursion. She was a few minutes late, thanks to Kurt's reluctance to let her out of bed this morning, and color tinged her cheeks at the memory of just how he had awoken her. It had taken all her willpower to resist his coercion and get ready to go. If he hadn't had to work today, she never would have walked out that door.

"Morning, Taylor," Sarah greeted as she climbed carefully into the SUV, coffee cup in hand. Taylor looked entirely too cheerful for this hour of the morning, she thought as she took a large sip of the steaming beverage, thankful she didn't have to drive. The tension between her parents since her mother's return from Kurt's yesterday had been palpable and had kept her up until the wee hours of the morning. If this trip wasn't such an important milestone in repairing her relationship with Taylor, she would have cancelled.

"Good morning, Sarah," Taylor returned as she put the vehicle in drive, noting the weariness in the other woman's posture with concern. "Rough night?"

Sarah placed her coffee in the cup holder before leaning her head back against the headrest. "Mom and Dad are at odds for some reason she won't talk about, but I suspect you already knew that." There was no anger in her voice, no recrimination, just a simple statement of fact. "Since all she would tell me when she came back from Kurt's was that we're having a second Christmas dinner there at your suggestion. Minus Dad."

Taylor sighed, feeling her good mood begin to slip away. She would be so glad when the past was behind her once and for all, when it didn't color all her conversations and force her to justify her every decision. "I'm sorry, Sarah. I know it must feel like my return is tearing your family apart, and it couldn't have happened at a worse time, with your father's illness, but Kurt was so adamant against going to your parents' for dinner that I felt it would be better to have a separate one than to make everyone miserable by convincing him to come."

"It's the lesser of two evils, I know." Sarah gave Taylor a sad smile. "I just hate that it has to be this way, but I know it's not your fault. I need to apologize to you. I was so mad at you for leaving the way you did, so afraid Kurt was about to get his heart broken again, that I wasn't very nice to you when you returned, and I'm sorry for that."

"You had every right to be angry, and you never need to apologize to me for looking out for your family," Taylor replied. "I knew coming back would be difficult, Sarah; I wasn't looking for a warm and fuzzy reunion." Though that was much closer to what she'd gotten than she could have ever imagined. At least with Kurt and Maggie. "I'd much rather you be honest with me when something is bothering you rather than pretending everything's okay and letting it fester."

"In that case, if we're talking about honesty . . ." Sarah paused for dramatic effect and saw Taylor wince. "I've really glad you're home, Taylor, and not just for Kurt's sake. I've really missed you."

Taylor grinned, feeling her spirits lift anew at Sarah's admission. "I've missed you too. You were more like a big sister than a friend to me, and there were so many times over the years that I started to pick up the phone and call you to get your advice on something that was going on in my life before I'd remember that I couldn't do that without . . ." She broke off, not wanting to say too much since Sarah still didn't have the full story. "Anyway, I'm glad to be home."

Sarah studied Taylor in silence for some time before she spoke again. "Mom told me if I wanted to know the rest of your reasons for leaving, I would have to talk to you and Kurt. I hope it won't make you think any less of me, but I don't plan on asking you that. At least not now. Dad doesn't have a lot of time left, and whatever he's done, he's still . . . well, he's still my dad, and he's always been there for me. I feel like I'm the only one left in the family who cares about him, and I don't want him to die feeling alone."

"I understand," Taylor assured her, and she did. She respected the hell out of Sarah Weller for that choice, in fact. And she was more than a little relieved not to have to tell her story again, at least not for a while. "There's no either-or here, Sarah. Our relationship is completely separate from yours with your father. I don't expect anyone to dislike a person simply because I do in order to be my friend. No matter what the problem I'm having with them."

Sarah smiled freely for the first time that morning. "I appreciate that. I have a feeling you're being far more understanding than I would be if our roles were reversed." Judging by her mom's reaction, whatever else her dad had done to Taylor must have been pretty terrible. Her smile slipped after a moment. "I just hope I can keep all this from affecting Sawyer. So far he's oblivious to the tension in the house, but as much as I worry about him picking up on that, I'm more concerned about Kurt's not coming around anymore. He's the closest thing to a father figure Sawyer's ever known, and . . ." She shrugged helplessly.

"What's the story with Sawyer's father, if you don't mind my asking?" Taylor questioned when it became clear Sarah wasn't going to continue.

"Kurt didn't tell you?" Sarah was surprised. Her relationship with Sawyer's father was one of his biggest pet peeves, but as often as she told him to butt out, she found it hard to be too annoyed at him. His interference was well-meaning and came from a place of caring, after all, which was more than her ex had ever truly done. "Sawyer's father is a doctor; I met him in my last year of nursing school. He was my first serious boyfriend, and I was so flattered by the attentions of such a hotshot young surgeon that I ignored all the warning signs that we didn't want the same things in a relationship."

"He wanted all the good times with none of the commitment," Taylor surmised. Much like her father apparently had. God, she hated men like that. Playtime was all well and good, but when they had a kid, whether intentionally or not, they needed to step up to the plate and be there for the life they'd helped create. "So he's not involved in Sawyer's life at all?"

"Not in any meaningful way," Sarah replied. "Sawyer wasn't planned, and I got the sense he wanted me to have an abortion, though he never came right out and said so. He's been paying into a college fund for him since he was born, but I've always felt that was more out of a sense of duty than genuine caring. It didn't even matter to him that I decided not to give his son his last name. He drops by occasionally to see Sawyer, but he's never been a real presence in his life. That's why I've been so happy since Kurt moved back here and started spending more time with Sawyer. He's a wonderful role model, and Sawyer has really benefited from his influence."

"Well, we'll just have to make sure he continues to do so," Taylor said determinedly. "Just because Kurt won't come to your parents' house right now doesn't mean Sawyer can't come out to our cabin and spend time with him." She broke off as Sarah gave her an odd look. "What?"

"You just said 'our cabin'," Sarah told her. "Are you and Kurt . . . living together now?" Already? Her brother usually moved at the speed of a tortoise in getting seriously entangled with a woman. She'd expected that he'd take things a little quicker this time, since he was dating Taylor, but she hadn't expected him to upgrade to hare speed. Now she understood why Taylor had been so cheery when she picked her up.

Taylor bit her lip. Sarah really hadn't been kidding when she said Maggie hadn't told her anything. "Sorry, I guess that wasn't the best way to find out, huh? I just assumed your mom would have mentioned that, at least."

Sarah shook her head. "I'd be peeved that I'm always the last one in the family to know stuff like this, but in this case, I'm pretty sure she didn't mention it to Dad either, so . . ." She laughed. "Congratulations. That must have been one epic first date. I'm still waiting for details on that, by the way." As well as being on the hook for her friends' dinners at the country club where she'd sent them to spy on her brother. She would have to find a way to pay her brother back for that little bit of misdirection.

"It was definitely memorable," Taylor agreed with a faraway look in her eyes, "but coming home the next day to find that Mom had packed all my stuff to move me in with Kurt? That . . . that was priceless."

Sarah exchanged a startled glance with Taylor before dissolving into giggles. "I'd have paid big money to have seen that," she gasped when she could finally speak. She hadn't known Emma Shaw had it in her. Maybe it was time to get to know her a little better. That little trick was right up her alley. "I assume Kurt was in on it?"

"Yeah," Taylor nodded. "He gave me a key to the cabin before he drove me home, but he never let on that I'd need it so soon." She smiled at the memory before turning serious once more. "I'll be happy to stay at Mom's Wednesday night after our dinner so Sawyer can have a sleepover with him, though. If you think he'd enjoy that."

Sarah swallowed down the lump in her throat, so thankful that Taylor and Kurt had found their way back to each other, that her brother finally had someone in his life who not only loved him but was willing to go out of her way to accommodate his family as well. "He'll love that, but you don't need to leave your home to make it happen. You and Kurt are a couple now, so Sawyer needs to start getting to know you too. Besides, if I know my brother, now that he's got you under his roof, he'll never agree to your going back to your mom's, even temporarily."

Taylor had a feeling she was right, and since she had already been dreading being away from Kurt, she wasn't about to argue the point. "I guess I'll just have to go to Plan B then."

"Which is what, exactly?" Sarah asked with a laugh.

"That's for me to know and you to find out," Taylor said archly. Mostly because she didn't quite have all the details worked out yet. "It will be my Christmas present to Kurt and Sawyer. Well, one of them, anyway."

"Now I'm worried," Sarah teased. "You'd better tell me all about this memorable date to distract me."

Taylor laughed as she obliged her and before she knew it, they were pulling into the mall's parking lot. It was almost full despite the early hour, crowded with last-minute shoppers, but she was lucky enough to find a parking spot close to one of the main entrances. "Have you been here often?" she asked Sarah as they headed inside. "I'm not much of a shopper, so I'm really hoping you have a game plan."

"Start at one end of the mall and work our way to the other?" Sarah suggested dryly, and Taylor laughed. "Seriously, though, you're probably not going to want to buy clothes as Christmas presents, so that will eliminate a lot of stores right there. We'll just wander through the rest of them and see what jumps out at you."

And she would purchase those items right then, Taylor promised herself, remembering Kurt's warning about Sarah's shopping habits. This mall was big and crowded enough that she didn't want to have to traverse it any more than necessary. Hopefully, most of her purchases would be small enough that she didn't have to make too many trips back and forth to her SUV.

By the time Taylor was ready to check out at the fifth store, they had settled into a routine. Sarah had given up trying to talk Taylor out of her purchases, no matter how outrageously expensive she felt they were, and they would browse the aisles together before Sarah left her alone to make her final selection. If Taylor wasn't purchasing anything for her at that particular store, she would join her at the register; otherwise she would wait for her near the entryway.

That goodwill evaporated when they reached the toy section of a high-end store. "Do you think Sawyer would like this?" Taylor asked as she picked up a robot that would be nearly as tall as him when it was assembled. Best of all, it would provide him and Kurt hours of quality time as they put it together.

Sarah winced as she got a look at the price tag. Taylor had already settled on an app-controlled wireless spy vehicle that was fairly expensive, though nothing compared to the robot, and she had a feeling this wasn't an either-or situation. Taylor clearly meant to buy both toys, and would no doubt have bought the iPad needed to operate them if Sawyer hadn't already had one. Not to mention whatever she had up her sleeve to make the sleepover a success. "He would, but I can't allow you to spend that much money on these, Taylor. That's much too generous."

"Nonsense," Taylor said briskly. "Sawyer is my almost-sister's son, and I have over nine years' worth of birthdays and holidays to make up for. This is a drop in the bucket."

"You don't need to buy us all a bunch of expensive presents to make up for the years we've lost, Taylor," Sarah told her earnestly. "Having you back—having closure about why you left and seeing Kurt so happy—that's the best gift you could have given us. It's the only gift we really need. Please don't spend more than you can afford trying to make up for years we'll never get back."

"That's not the only reason I'm doing this, Sarah," Taylor assured her. She smiled as she met the other woman's frankly skeptical gaze. " _Especially_ not for Sawyer. As the child of an absentee father myself, I know how overwhelming big changes can be, and with all the drama surrounding this one . . ." She sighed. "I can tell Sawyer that I'm not going to take his Uncle Kurt away from him until I'm blue in the face, but the only way I know to truly put him at ease is to show him. I'm not trying to buy his affection, but I also know you can't put a price on that kind of peace of mind. You guys were the ones to give me that; please, let me do the same for Sawyer now. I promise not to spend more than I can afford."

Tears filled Sarah's eyes as she took the toys from Taylor and placed the boxes on the shelf next to them before pulling her into the tight embrace she should have given her on her first day back. "I'm so glad Kurt held out for you," she said when she finally drew back. So glad Taylor's big heart extended to a boy she barely knew as of yet. "I have a feeling you're going to be Sawyer's new favorite person in no time."

"So it's okay?" Taylor asked anxiously.

"On one condition," Sarah specified. "You drop the almost." She smiled at Taylor's confusion. "You called me your almost-sister, but as far as I'm concerned, there's no 'almost' about it. You are my sister." And if the speed with which Kurt had moved her in with him was any indication, he would no doubt make it official soon.

Taylor felt tears well in her own eyes as she hugged Sarah again, ignoring the odd looks the other shoppers nearby were casting their way. They should be so lucky. "That's a deal . . . sis." She picked the toys back up and headed for the register. "How about we take these things out to the car and then get a snack before we finish shopping?" she proposed once she had finished checking out.

Sarah was amenable to that plan, and in a surprisingly short amount of time they found themselves at the food court enjoying generous slices of cheesecake. "Do you happen to have Matt's phone number?" Taylor asked as they finished up their snack, her thoughts returning to the other Christmas gift she had in mind for Kurt and Sawyer. Given the magnitude of it and the limited time frame she had, she was definitely going to need some help to pull it off.

"I have Jenny's," Sarah said as she pulled her phone out of her purse. "I can text her and get Matt's. I should probably put your number in my phone while I'm at it," she added as she sent the message. Taylor obligingly gave it to her, and by the time she had programmed it into her phone, Jenny had returned her text. She rattled off the number and excused herself to go the restroom in order to give Taylor time to make the call she clearly wanted privacy for.

"Hey, Matt," Taylor greeted as he picked up the phone. "Sorry to bother you again right before the holidays, but I was wondering if you knew any good furniture stores in Clearfield that could deliver first thing in the morning." She explained in detail what she wanted. "I'm in Pittsburgh with Sarah right now, but if you could give me their phone number, I thought I could call and tell the owner what I wanted, and swing by and pay for it when I get back to town this afternoon."

"I'll do you one better than that," Matt replied easily. "I'm on good terms with the owner of one of the nicest stores in town. You've given me a pretty good idea of what you want, so if you'll trust me and Jenny to pick this stuff out for you, I think I can convince him to deliver today, as long as you can be here to pay for it by closing time. We still have a spare key to the cabin, so getting in won't be a problem." He hesitated. "It sounds like it's going to be pretty pricey, though. Are you sure . . ."

"Money is no object in this case, Matt," Taylor assured him. "If you and Jenny wouldn't mind overseeing this, I would really appreciate it. I'll owe you one."

"No problem. I'll grab Jenny and we'll go right now." He would collect on her debt with a guy's night at the cabin after Christmas. "I'll meet up with you at the store after Kurt goes to work in the morning and help you pick out the rest of the stuff you'll need. I've got a couple buddies who can help me set everything up." The same ones he would be inviting over to enjoy the fruits of their labors.

"Thanks, Matt. I'll see you then." Taylor ended the call as she saw Sarah approaching.

"Ready to get back to it?" Sarah asked, and laughed when Taylor winced. "Oh, come on, you're almost done. I'm the one who still has to find the perfect presents for you. We need to kill a little time until we can pick up your items anyway." Taylor had ordered several personalized gifts at the first two stores they visited, and it would be almost an hour yet until they were ready.

Nearly an hour and a half passed before they collected those items and headed to the Mexican restaurant Sarah had discovered on her last visit here. "So," Taylor said once they were seated and had placed their orders, "catch me up on your life. Where were you living before you moved back to Clearfield to take care of your dad?"

"I live in New York City as well," Sarah told her. "I transferred to a nursing school there to be close to Kurt once it became clear you weren't coming back, and our apartment is just a couple blocks away from his. I work— _worked_ —in the NICU at Bellevue Hospital. I'm hoping I can get that job back once . . ." Once her dad died, though she couldn't bring herself to say that. Even though all her medical knowledge told her better, she was still hoping against hope that he would find a way to beat the cancer. "It's challenging work, but so rewarding."

Occasionally heart-wrenching as well, Taylor guessed from the look on Sarah's face, and changed the subject. "What about your love life? Do you have a boyfriend or any romantic prospects? Any doctors you dream about at night?"

Sarah laughed a little. "No. Most of the ones I knew were married or in a serious relationship and the ones that weren't . . . well, let's just say they reminded me a little too much of Sawyer's father to make the mistake of getting involved with them. Honestly, between work and raising Sawyer, I never really had that much free time to go out of my way to look for someone. Once in a while, when Sawyer's dad would drop by to see him, if he wasn't home, we would, uh . . ."

"Reconnect?" Taylor supplied dryly.

"Yeah." Sarah laughed a little before turning serious again. "It always drove Kurt crazy that I would let him anywhere near me after the way things turned out between us, but the sex was really great, and I always knew where I stood with him." There'd been no strings attached, no expectations. Maybe she was selling herself short, as Kurt contended, but whatever her ex's shortcomings, he had always managed to make her feel desired as a woman, and sometimes she needed that. Sometimes that was enough.

She sighed. "You guys don't know how lucky you are to have found one another so young." She was happy for them but also more than a little envious. It must be wonderful to have so many years of shared memories with the person you were going to spend the rest of your life with. "Why couldn't you have had an older brother my age?" she demanded only half-facetiously.

"You'll find someone amazing soon enough," Taylor predicted as the waiter approached with their food. Honestly, it was beyond her how someone who had literally dedicated her entire life to taking care of others was still single when so many of the criminals she apprehended every day had apparently found their soulmates, but selfishly, she was thankful Sarah hadn't stumbled on that special someone here in Clearfield. She was looking forward to having her newfound sister as a neighbor back in New York.

Sarah smiled her thanks, and the two of them turned their attention to their food. The meal flew by, Sarah entertaining Taylor with tales of Sawyer's antics over the years, and by the time they left the restaurant, she almost felt she knew the boy. They made one more quick stop at an art supply store to pick up some frames for pictures she wanted to draw, including the one Kurt had requested, before heading back to Clearfield. "I had a great time today," she told Sarah as she pulled up in front of the Wellers. "Thanks for going with me."

"My pleasure." Sarah leaned across the console and hugged Taylor tightly. "We'll have to do it again soon." She hopped out and retrieved her bags from the backseat as her mom came outside and hurried over to the SUV. "Bye, Taylor. See you Wednesday," she said before heading toward the house, sensing her mother wanted a moment alone with Taylor.

Maggie climbed into the passenger seat Sarah had just vacated. "Hi, Taylor. Did you and Sarah have a good day?"

"We did," Taylor assured her. "We've decided we're sisters for real, so I think it's safe to say we've pretty well mended fences. Sarah's decided she doesn't want to know the whole story about why I left though," she cautioned Maggie.

"And you're . . . are you okay with that?" Maggie asked nervously.

Taylor nodded. "Like I told Sarah, the problems between her father and me have nothing to do with her. He's been a good dad to her, as far as I can tell, and I have no desire to tarnish his memory in her eyes." That clearly wasn't what Maggie had climbed into her vehicle to talk about, though. "What's on your mind, Maggie?"

Maggie hesitated. "Given . . . given everything that Tom's put you through, I want you to know you're under no obligation to follow through on that favor I asked of you the other day. If I had known the whole story then, I never would have asked it. I meant to tell you this yesterday, but it slipped my mind."

"I appreciate that." Taylor gave the older woman's hand a gentle squeeze. "But _I_ knew the whole story when I agreed to it, and I'm not going to change my mind. You guys are family to me, and I'm not about to let the past dictate my actions now." _She_ , at least, had nothing to be ashamed of.

Maggie nodded. She'd expected as much, but she'd felt she had to make the offer. "Have you told Kurt?" she asked slowly.

Taylor grimaced. She was _not_ looking forward to that conversation. "I thought I'd wait and tell him Wednesday morning. He's not going to change my mind, so there's no sense giving him extra time to fret about it."

"Feel free to blame me if you need to," Maggie told Taylor as she hugged her tightly. "Who knows? Maybe he'll take it better than either of us thinks."

Maybe pigs would sprout wings and fly, but she wouldn't hold her breath. Taylor did her best to keep the skepticism off her face, not wanting to burst Maggie's bubble. "Let's hope you're right." She glanced at the clock on the dash, startled to see it was after three already. "Listen, Maggie, I'm sorry, but I've got to run." She needed to get Kurt's presents wrapped and put away before he got home from work, and she still had to stop at the furniture store and pay for her purchases. She leaned over and gave her yet another hug, sensing Maggie'd had a rough day. It couldn't've been easy being stuck in the house all day having to care for a husband you now despised. "I love you."

The smile that lit Maggie's eyes was genuine this time. "I love you too, dear. You're a daughter to me, just like you're a sister to Sarah." She would love it if Taylor would start calling her _Mom_ , but she hesitated to make the request, not sure how Taylor would feel about it and not wanting to step on Emma's toes. Emma had always been a little insecure about Taylor's closeness with her, and she didn't want to impair the progress the two of them appeared to be making in mending the rift between them.

Taylor took that decision out of her hands, sensing what Maggie wanted but was too hesitant to ask. "In that case, I'll see you on Wednesday . . . Mom."

Both women sported broad grins and tearstained cheeks as they went their separate ways.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Sorry for the delay in posting. My mom had to be admitted to a big-city hospital several hours away from us this weekend, so real life's been rough. I appreciate all the wonderful reviews I've received. I try to respond to each and every one but several of the links has sent me recently to reply to them haven't worked. So if I wasn't able to tell you thank you personally, I'm thanking you now.

* * *

Kurt went to work shortly after Taylor left to pick up Sarah, but as the day wore on, he was finding it increasingly difficult to keep his mind on the tasks at hand. Memories of last night continued to intrude on his thoughts, and he found himself smiling at the most inopportune moments. He was relieved when the clock finally inched its way close enough to twelve that he could adjourn the departmental meeting he was in and head to Emma's for lunch. He had a very important question to ask her.

"What's her name, boss?" Ben McKinnon asked as they walked out of the conference room.

Kurt glanced at his senior deputy sheriff. Ben had almost fifty years on the job, and thirty years on Kurt; by all rights he should be calling the older man _boss_ , but Ben had declined the job when the town council offered it. He had already planned to retire at the end of the year and he didn't want to stay on to shoulder the added responsibility, even temporarily. "Whose name?" he asked, feigning ignorance of the man's meaning.

Ben chuckled. "I've been an investigator for almost forty years, son, and the only thing I've ever seen put that look you're wearing on a man's face is a woman he's crazy about. Not to mention, up until last week we could practically set our clocks by you, you were so punctual. Then all of the sudden, you're coming in late and leaving early, not nearly as focused on work and smiling for no apparent reason. You don't have to be a detective to interpret those clues. So. Who is she?"

Kurt ushered Ben into his office and closed the door. "Her name is Taylor Shaw," he said as he motioned the older man to take a seat and walked around his desk to do the same. "We grew up next door to one another and I fell in love with her as a teenager, but we . . . lost touch before I could tell her how I felt." He hesitated a moment before adding, "She came back last week and I found out she's always felt the same way. She moved in with me on Saturday. I want to . . . I was just heading over to her mother's to ask her blessing to marry her daughter. I'm planning to propose to her tomorrow night."

"A Christmas Eve proposal," Ben said quietly. "I'm sure she'll love that. Congratulations, Kurt."

Kurt had known the other man long enough to be able to tell when he was holding something back, and he had a pretty good idea what that something was. Ben and his wife had been married for over forty-five years and Kurt had heard him voice his opinion about how quickly modern-day couples rushed into matrimony several times. "I know you probably think it's too sudden . . ."

"Surprisingly, no," Ben interrupted. "That's not what concerns me at all in your case. You're not some teenager being ruled by your hormones, Weller; you've got a level head on your shoulders, and your feelings for Taylor, and hers for you, have clearly stood the test of time." He shifted in his chair as Kurt's brow furrowed at his words. "Look, as an old married man who's still madly in love with his wife, may I offer you some advice?"

"Please do," Kurt said.

"Don't assume that just because everything's been smooth sailing for the two of you since Taylor returned that it will automatically continue to do so. Use this engagement period to talk about issues you'll be facing as man and wife: your goals and dreams, raising children, finances, that sort of thing. Trust me, you'll both be a lot happier if you hammer out any major compromises that need to be made before you say _I do_."

Ben had no idea how difficult things had actually been for him and Taylor since she'd come home, but his advice was sound. They had worked through their past; it was time to start figuring out their future. "We'll definitely do that. Thanks, Ben." Kurt rose and pulled on his coat, suddenly more eager than anxious to pick up the sandwiches he'd ordered from Emma's favorite deli down the street and get over to her house.

"You're welcome, boss," Ben said as he followed Kurt out of his office. "Good luck. Let me know how it goes. And bring Taylor by the station before I retire so I can meet her, okay?"

"I will," Kurt promised as they parted ways and he headed out on his errands. Fifteen minutes later, he took a deep breath as he pulled up in Emma's driveway. He took a deep breath as he jogged up the steps and knocked on the front door.

"Kurt!" Emma was delighted to see him. "Come in, come in. What brings you by today?"

"We haven't had one of our lunches since Taylor got into town," Kurt replied as he followed her into the kitchen. "I picked us up some sandwiches from the deli downtown." He pulled hers from the bag and set it down in front of her before taking his out and sitting down at the end of the table next to her. "How are you doing, Emma?" he asked gently. The dark circles under her eyes concerned him, and he hoped the sleepless night was due more to Taylor's revelation than a worsening of her illness.

"I've been better," Emma admitted. "Now that I know what Taylor went through, I just . . . I keep going over and over that time frame in my mind, wondering how I could have failed her so completely. What warning signs I missed. Her teachers tried to tell me that something was seriously wrong, Kurt, and I dismissed their concerns. What kind of mother does that? How could I have become so out of touch with my own daughter that when she was going through the worst time of her life, she felt she couldn't confide in me?"

"You can't think like that, Emma." Though God knows, Kurt had been entertaining thoughts that were eerily similar. "It's Taylor's nature to protect others at the expense of herself, and you know how stubborn she can be once she makes up her mind on a course of action. It's unlikely anything you could have said to her would have weakened her resolve."

"But at least I could have tried!" Emma burst out, pushing her sandwich away from her, her appetite gone. "I could have let her know that her changes in behavior hadn't gone unnoticed, that I was there for her if she ever wanted to talk. Instead, I ignored repeated warnings from some of the best educators in the state, at least one of whom had a master's degree in child psychology, and allowed her to distance herself from everyone and everything she loved. Motherhood was the most important job I ever had, and I failed at it completely."

"You raised a loyal, compassionate, brave, selfless daughter," Kurt contradicted sharply. "If that's failing, more parents should do it so well."

Emma smiled sadly. "I think your family deserves more of the credit for instilling those traits in her than I do. I wasn't around enough to . . ."

"Yes, you were," Kurt interrupted patiently. "Granted, not as much as you should have been, but Taylor learned from your example. Do you honestly not see how alike the two of you are? Even her stubbornness comes from you, though she's got a much bigger streak of it." Which he was grateful for, given the profession she had chosen. "There is one big difference between the two of you, though. She's much less dramatic," he teased and laughed when Emma slugged him in the shoulder.

He sobered quickly. "You regret not being more supportive of Taylor when all this happened; I regret not using my investigative skills to track her down years ago. We both made mistakes, Emma, but let's not compound them now. Taylor's trying to put the past behind her and move forward, and she needs our full support to do that. We _can't_ give her that if we're still beating ourselves up about all the things we did wrong in the past, and I, for one, don't intend to fail her a second time." Ultimately, his father was the only one responsible for the chain of events that had separated them, and he was the only one Kurt intended to blame. Just as Taylor did.

"Nor do I," Emma agreed, feeling a huge weight lift off her shoulders at the calm logic of his words. She gently covered his hand with hers. "Thanks, Kurt. That was just what I needed to hear."

"You know what else you need to do?" Kurt pushed her sandwich back toward her. "Eat. I have something very important to discuss with you, but I'm not going to say a word till you've eaten every bite."

Emma frowned at him, but obediently picked up her sandwich and began to eat. He'd made it impossible for her to refuse. He knew how she hated being left out of the loop. Fortunately, he'd picked up one of her favorite sandwiches and after a few bites, her appetite returned with a vengeance. "There," she said as she swallowed the last bite. "All gone. Satisfied?"

"Perfectly." Kurt took his time finishing his own sandwich, pretending not to notice her eager eyes on him, impatience practically radiating off her in waves. The stall tactic was as much to give him time to rehearse his speech again as to annoy her.

He started to fold up his sandwich wrapper when he was done, but Emma grabbed it and tossed it to the other end of the table. "Enough delays. Spill," she demanded.

Kurt took a deep breath. "Okay. Well, like I said earlier, Taylor is . . . incredible. She's intelligent and smart and funny and kind, the most amazing woman I've ever met." He smiled as he met Emma's eyes and hers filled with tears, realizing what was coming. "I love her more than life itself, and I am beyond blessed that she feels the same about me." He paused for a moment to let that sink in, and Emma leaned forward in anticipation. "A long time ago I stated my intentions to marry your daughter someday, and now I'm asking for your blessing to do so."

"Oh, Kurt." Emma didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and she suddenly realized she was doing both as she leaned over to hug him fiercely. " _Yes_. A million times over, yes." She wiped at her eyes as she let him go. Even though her response had never been in doubt, it meant the world to her that he'd asked. "I do have one condition, though."

"Name it," Kurt said without hesitation.

"I know you love my daughter enough to do anything in the world for her, but please . . . don't let her talk you into eloping. I've waited her whole life to help plan this wedding, and as much as she may think she's too much of a tomboy to care for such pomp and ceremony, deep down I know she'd always regret not having it. I'm counting on you to stick to your guns on this."

"I will," Kurt promised her, and he got to his feet as she rose.

Emma hugged him again. "Oh. My little girl's getting married. _Finally_. I'm going to need to dig out all those bridal magazines I had when she was a teenager, and start making lists of all the things that need to be done, and . . ."

"She does still have to say yes," Kurt said dryly, not wanting Emma to get too carried away before he even had a chance to pop the question.

Emma waved aside such mundane considerations. It was a foregone conclusion that Taylor's answer would be _yes_ , just as hers had been. "Don't worry. I won't give anything away. As long as you do it soon," she added, knowing she wouldn't be able to hold it in if she saw Taylor very often before Kurt asked her. "Oh, I can't wait to see the ring. You do have a ring, right? Is it the same one you bought when she was sixteen?"

"I do," Kurt confirmed. "And it is." He'd had to call Emma to get her ring size. Hopefully, that hadn't changed, but if it had, they could get it resized after Christmas. He was praying that wouldn't be necessary, though. He wanted that ring on her finger as quickly as possible. He wanted every man that came into contact with her to know she was permanently off the market, that she was his. "I'll get her a different one if she prefers, though." He knew many couples selected the ring together.

"She'll love it," Emma predicted. "It will mean the world to her that you picked it out way back when the two of you weren't even speaking and held onto it all these years."

He'd come close to selling it several times over the years, even taking it to a local jewelry store on one occasion intending to trade it for gifts for his mother and sister, but in the end, he'd never quite been able to part with it. Giving up the ring would have meant letting go of his dreams of a future with Taylor, and he'd never quite been able to do that. He was glad now he'd heeded the little voice inside his head that told him to hang onto it.

He pulled his future mother-in-law back into a tight hug. "Thanks, Emma. Your support means more than you know. You've always been like a second mother to me, and I'm looking forward to officially being family."

"We're already family as far as I'm concerned," Emma told him. Though it had taken her far longer to realize that than it should have. "And I would love it if you'd start calling me _Mom_ , if you're okay with that."

Kurt smiled down at her, letting her know he was more than all right with that. "You realize if I do, Mom will expect Taylor to start doing the same?" he cautioned. The Emma of fifteen years ago would not have taken that well, but he had a feeling this version of her was more than capable of handling it.

Emma shrugged. "The way I see it, that's inevitable anyway. I'm more than okay with sharing my daughter with Maggie as long as she shares her son with me. The way I see it, we're both coming out winners in that case."

As far as Kurt was concerned, he and Taylor were the real winners in that scenario, but he wisely kept that to himself. His mom and Emma had always gotten along, but they'd never been as close as he thought they could have been if they would just have put their petty differences aside. They actually had a lot in common and he found himself hoping once again that they would become better friends. "I have a feeling she'll agree with you there."

"So I guess that just leaves one question then." Emma did her best to keep a straight face as she studied Kurt. "Think you can handle having a drama queen for a mother-in-law?"

Kurt just laughed as he kissed her cheek. He was still smiling when he walked back into the station a short time later and nodded as he met Ben's inquiring gaze. Mission accomplished. He returned to his office and turned his attention to the paperwork he had been neglecting since Taylor's return. He became so engrossed in the work that he jumped when someone cleared their throat in the doorway.

"You planning on staying here all night, boss?" Ben asked. "Your missus is going to be wondering where you're at.

Kurt glanced over at the clock on the wall, startled to see it was after five. "Just a few more minutes. I want to leave early tomorrow, so I need to at least finish this stack." He held up the half-inch thick sheaf of papers in front of him. "And Taylor's an FBI agent, so she understands how work can be."

"Probably even better than we do," Ben agreed as he took the seat across from Kurt's desk once more. He'd debated following that career path as a young man, but Marie had talked him out of it, and he'd always been thankful she had. He slept better at night not having firsthand knowledge of the threats this country faced on a daily basis. He held out a hand. "How 'bout I help you with that so we can both go home at a reasonable hour tonight?"

"I appreciate that, Ben," Kurt said as he sorted through the sheaf of papers and handed nearly half of them to the other man.

The two of them worked in companionable silence for some time before Ben asked, "How does your family feel about Taylor's return? Do they get along well with her?"

Kurt froze. That was a loaded question, if ever there was one. He hesitated, not wanting to disclose more to a stranger than Taylor would be comfortable with him sharing, but curious to hear Ben's perspective on their situation. He glanced out the door, seeing several officers within earshot. Finally, he came to a decision. "Close the door, Ben," he said quietly.

He waited until Ben had done as he asked and resumed his seat before continuing. "What I'm about to tell you doesn't leave this room." Ben was one of the most discreet individuals he had ever met, but given the sensitive subject matter, the warning was justified. Ben nodded and Kurt gave him an abbreviated version of their history.

"Wow," Ben said as he struggled to digest what he had just been told. To find out what a son of a bitch someone you cared about truly was when he was already dying and during the holiday season . . . The Wellers must be going through hell right now. "That's . . . I'm very sorry to hear that, Kurt. How are all of you handling this?"

"Sarah . . ." Kurt took a deep breath. "Sarah still doesn't know the whole story. She was really angry at Taylor when she first came back, but now that she knows Taylor did have at least one valid reason for leaving, she's working to patch things up. The two of them went Christmas shopping together today." He hadn't heard how that went, but he supposed no news was good news.

"Mom . . . Mom found out yesterday, and right now I think she's having the toughest time of all of us dealing with it. She's always loved Taylor like a daughter, and as the one adult living under the same roof with . . . with _him_ back then, she feels like she failed her, failed both of us, by not picking up on what was going on." To make matters worse, at this point she had no choice but to continue residing under the same roof as the man who had betrayed her, betrayed them all. His father's illness meant she wouldn't even get the satisfaction of divorce.

Ben shook his head. "She can't think like that. I know from personal experience just how good these monsters are at concealing their true intentions. One of our granddaughters was abused by her stepfather," he said in response to Kurt's unanswered question. "We don't talk about it much outside the family, but I'll be happy to speak to your mother if you think it'll help. I'd been a law enforcement officer my whole life, but in that situation I was just as clueless as the most naïve civilian. Heck, I genuinely liked the guy."

"I appreciate the offer, Ben. I may take you up on that." Kurt hesitated, thinking of his earlier conversation with Emma. "If you're willing, I think Taylor's mother may benefit from that talk as well."

"I'll be happy to speak to both of them," Ben assured him. "Just name the time and place. And you?" he asked after a long moment when Kurt didn't volunteer any information about himself. "How are you dealing with this?"

Kurt shrugged. "I loved Taylor long before my father did this, and I'll love her long after he's gone. I told him not to contact me until he was ready to explain his actions, but given what I've learned since then, there's nothing he could ever say that could justify what he's done. I want nothing more to do with him, and I sure as hell am not going to subject Taylor to him ever again. I plan to keep her away from him from now on."

"And how does Taylor feel about that plan?" Ben asked quietly.

Kurt frowned at the clear disapproval in the other man's voice. "You think I'm making a mistake? After everything he's done to her?"

"I think she deserves a say in it," Ben told him. "You've all obviously suffered because of your father's actions, but as you said, this was done _to_ her. She may want to confront him, or at least show him that she's happy now in spite of him. As a man, I understand the need to protect the woman you love, but sometimes that doesn't mean leaving them at home while you go off to slay their dragons for them. Sometimes that means standing shoulder-to-shoulder with them and facing those dragons together."

Kurt glanced away as Ben's words sank in. As much as he hated to admit it, the older man was right. Taylor's fearlessness and independence were two of the qualities that had first attracted him to her, and in trying to dictate her actions in this situation, he would be denying her the opportunity to exercise an integral part of herself. She hadn't put a foot wrong in handling things so far; he needed to continue to allow her to take the lead and support her unconditionally. "I'll talk to her."

"Good," Ben said. He handed Kurt the finished paperwork and tossed the remainder of the stack on his desk. "Now, let's go home. I'll come in early tomorrow and help you finish this up."

"Sounds good," Kurt agreed as he rose to his feet and pulled on his coat, suddenly very eager to get home to Taylor and hear how her day had gone. Since it had gotten so late, he stopped to pick them up some food on the way home. Taylor's SUV was in the driveway when he arrived, but the cabin was silent. "Taylor?" he called.

"Back here," she called from the direction of their bedroom.

Kurt set the food down on the kitchen table and walked down the hallway toward the sound of her voice, finding her not in their room, but cross-legged on the floor of his office, surrounded by a mound of wrapped presents and wrapping paper and tape. He gaped at her as Ben's warning about finances came to mind. "Did you buy out the entire mall?"

"Of course not." Taylor finished wrapping the final package and accepted his hand to help her to her feet. "Perfect timing. Is that Chinese I smell?" She brushed past him before he could think of an appropriate response.

He broached the subject again once they had filled their plates and the sharp edge of hunger had been sated. "You know you didn't have to buy us more than one present each, right? That list I gave you was just a suggestion; I didn't mean for you to get everything on it."

She hadn't. She'd gotten more. Taylor paused with her fork halfway to her mouth. There was something in his tone . . . "Kurt, are you worried that I'm a spendthrift?" she demanded.

"No!" Kurt responded at once, but even he could hear how flimsy that denial sounded. "Well, yes, a little. I mean, I'm not worried that you habitually overspend—" Taylor hated shopping too much to make that likely, "—but I am concerned that you did so today to make up for all the Christmases you've missed. I know FBI agents don't make all that much money, and the cost of living is high in New York. We don't need a bunch of expensive presents; we're all just glad to have you back."

Taylor nodded solemnly, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling. "That's true. But now that we're dating, I figured you'd want me to give up my apartment to move in with you, so I felt safe spending my rent money for next year." In reality, the cost of the hole-in-the-wall apartment she rented for a discounted rate because her landlord liked having a police presence in his building probably wouldn't cover a third of her purchases today. She donned her best poker face as she waited to see how long it would take him to figure out she was teasing.

Kurt blinked. Had she really just said . . .? His eyes narrowed as he zeroed in on Taylor's gaze, and he saw the amusement lurking deep in their green depths. Two could play at that game. "I don't know, Tee. I've been thinking we should keep our own space, at least for now, see each other for a while before we make a long-term commitment like that. Since I'm the first guy you've ever been serious about, I don't want to deprive you of a normal dating experience."

He wanted to play it that way, did he? Fine. "You're right," Taylor acknowledged, allowing just a hint of tears to creep into her voice. Her mom had wanted to be an actress before she was born, and while she didn't have anything approaching her mother's talent, she had learned a thing or two in those drama classes at boarding school. "We should take things slow. In fact, my moving in here was probably a mistake as well. I should . . . I should go back to Mom's."

She rose as if to go pack, but before she could take a step, Kurt's hand shot out, catching her arm and pulling her gently into his lap. His lips were on hers before she could take her next breath. "You try that and I'll haul you back here in handcuffs if I have to," he threatened when he finally broke the kiss. "And for the record, you are absolutely moving in with me when we go back to New York. Minx."

Taylor gave him her most innocent look. "Well, you were the one who said . . ."

"Forget what I said," Kurt groaned. "You win. I yield. You know, I'm beginning to think I was wrong when I told your mom at lunch today that you were much less dramatic than her. You are every inch your mother's daughter."

"You had lunch with my mom?" Taylor was momentarily distracted from the subject of her finances by the news. "How was she?"

"She was pretty upset when I got there, but I managed to cheer her up," Kurt assured Taylor. "She's just going to need a little time to deal with what you've been through, but she'll work through it. How did your shopping excursion with Sarah go?"

"Really, really well," Taylor said as she laid her head on his chest. "We've decided we're sisters again. Kurt, there's something I need to tell you."

"Yeah? What's that?" Kurt asked as her tone shifted from serious to happy and back again so quickly he nearly got whiplash following it.

Taylor hesitated. "Do you remember how I said my first night back that money wasn't all that important to me?"

"I do," Kurt said cautiously, wondering where she was going with this. Was she about to confess to him that she was in fact a closet shopaholic, with a houseful of unopened and unused items and a mountain of debt to go along with it?

"Well, when I said that, I didn't mean to imply I didn't _have_ any _._ I joined an investment club at the Naval Academy, and I turned out to have quite a knack for it. I've lived pretty simply over the years and invested most of my income, so I . . . well, I . . ."

"Tee, you're not trying to tell me you have a million dollars in the bank, or something like that, are you?" Kurt demanded incredulously.

"No," Taylor said as she leaned back to see his face and hesitated again when she saw him let out the breath he had been holding "It was actually north of six million the last time I checked. And I reinvested most of that, so it's not actually in the bank," she hastened to add.

"Six . . ." Kurt couldn't even bring himself to say the words. He sucked in a breath and ended up choking on air. "You're serious," he said when he could finally breathe. He'd known she was smart, but this . . .

Taylor nodded. "It started out as a hobby, but I enjoyed the challenge, and I did pretty well at it. Then I met this quirky computer programmer who advised me to invest all the money I'd already made into coin, and I made a killing. I can give it away if it bothers you, though" she offered, perfectly willing to do so. She had contemplated doing that several times anyway, since she never seemed to have a use for it. She had run across a number of worthy charities over the years. Of course, now that she and Kurt were together again and planning on having kids, it would make a nice nest egg for their college funds.

"It doesn't bother me, Tee; it impresses the hell out of me." Kurt fell silent for a moment. "Of course, that means you'll need to see a lawyer about getting a pre-nup drawn up before we . . ." Get married, he started to say, but decided to avoid the topic any further until he actually asked her to do so.

"No, I won't," Taylor contradicted. "You told me on the day I moved in here that your house was my house, and I feel the same way about what I have. What's mine is yours."

"Tee, you can't just—"

"Are you ever planning on leaving me?" she asked him.

"No, of course not," Kurt told her. "But—"

"No buts." Taylor laid her head back on his chest and hugged him tightly. "I'm not ever going to leave you either, so there's no point in getting a pre-nup. I'd have to pay a lawyer, which would be a waste of money since neither of us is going anywhere, and you just lectured me about doing that."

Kurt opened his mouth to rebut that logic and realized he was at a loss. Only Taylor could successfully turn an argument about excessively buying Christmas presents into a defense against protecting the assets she was going to be bringing into their marriage. And then suddenly, he knew exactly what to say. "In that case, I guess you're about to become half-owner of a PI business."

"Kurt—"

He placed a finger under her chin, interrupting her protest. "What's mine is yours, remember." Whether she decided to come work there or not, though he was really hoping she would. Being partners in their professional lives as well as their personal might be too much of a challenge for many couples, but he was confident they could handle it.

"Won't that upset your employees?" Taylor asked. "You giving away half the business to a newcomer when they've been working for you all this time?"

Typical Taylor, always looking out for the feelings of others. Even those she didn't yet know. "They're well-paid to do their jobs, Tee," Kurt said patiently. "And my employees either don't want the headache of running their own business or they're there to get some practical experience before branching out on their own. Besides . . ." He tightened his hold on her as he raised up just enough to retrieve his wallet from his back pocket and pull out the business card he kept inside. "One could argue that it's always been half yours." He handed the card to her.

"T & K Investigations," Taylor read slowly, hardly able to believe what she was seeing. "You named your business after me?" There seemed to be no end to the proof of his devotion to her through the years.

"After us," Kurt corrected softly, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair. He didn't think he was ever going to tire of being able to touch her whenever he wanted, of reaching out for her in the night and having her actually be there to pull into his arms. He would love to ask her if she had given any more thought to coming to work with him, but he didn't want to ruin such a tender moment. "After all the good times we had together as kids."

Taylor seemed almost to read his mind. "That's . . . that's really sweet, Kurt. I can't wait to start working there."

He couldn't either, but he needed to be sure that she wasn't doing it simply to please him. "You're sure that's what you want to do? If you need to take a little more time to think about it . . ."

"I don't," she assured him. "As long as you'll have me, I'm there."

"Then it's settled," Kurt said simply. "If you want to, I'll even let you invest some of the business's money, see if you can't make enough to give our employees generous year-end bonuses. If you haven't won them over by then, that's sure to make them love you."

Taylor raised her chin at the challenge. "For your information, Kurt Weller, I intend to have them eating out of my hand within six months."

"I'm sure you will, Tee. Now," he teased, "any more earth-shattering announcements you need to tell me about?"

Taylor shrugged as she returned to her own seat to finish her supper. "I don't know if it counts as earth-shattering, but I do have a couple more things to tell you. Maggie and I talked when Sarah and I got back, and, well . . . I started calling her Mom. I hope that's okay with you."

"As long as you're okay with the fact that I started calling yours _Mom_ today as well, absolutely." Kurt smiled as he met her gaze, pleased that they were so in sync. "And the second thing?"

"I invited Sawyer over for a sleepover Wednesday night," Taylor told him. "Sarah was concerned about you not being there for him as much because of recent events, and you're too important an influence in his life for him to lose."

"Sarah told you about his father," Kurt surmised, and Taylor nodded. He shook his head. "All of us knew that guy was all wrong for her the first time we met him, but she was already so infatuated with him that she turned a deaf ear to all our concerns. But she got Sawyer out of the deal, so it wasn't all bad. I'm glad you thought to invite him."

"Me, too." She hoped he would still feel that way once he saw what she had done. "So that's my day in a nutshell. How was yours?"

"Busy," Kurt said with a laugh. "I didn't quite finish all the paperwork I was hoping to today, but one of my deputy sheriffs volunteered to come in early in the morning to help me finish up." He hesitated. "I hope you don't mind, but I shared some of the details of our situation with him. He's been married for over forty-five years, and I thought his perspective might . . . help me avoid some of the pitfalls that could strain things between us or my family."

"And did it?" Taylor asked quietly.

"I think so, yes. His advice was very . . . insightful," Kurt settled on for lack of a better word.

"Then I'm glad you did," Taylor said simply. She reached a hand across the table and threaded her fingers through Kurt's. "I know from personal experience that sometimes it helps to get an objective opinion, but just remember that I'm here for you if you need to talk. Just like you have been for me."

"I know, Tee," Kurt assured her. "And we will, I promise." She had asked to hear his side of the story, and he owed her that. "But right now . . . right now I'd just like to celebrate the first full day we've had with no secrets between us. So if you really want to be there for me tonight—" his voice dropped an octave and she shivered, "—you'll slip into that bikini your mom bought you and join me in the hot tub.

Taylor didn't need to be asked twice.


	17. Chapter Sixteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor was on the go from the time her feet hit the floor Tuesday morning. She feigned sleep when Kurt came in to kiss her goodbye, knowing if she opened her eyes both of them would be late to work, and jumped out of bed the moment she heard the front door close behind him. She got ready in record time and texted Matt as she walked out the door, relieved to find he was already on the way to the store. She hustled that way herself, arriving only minutes after him. He was waiting for her just inside the entrance. "Hey, Matt."

"Morning, Taylor," Matt greeted in return. "Ready to spend some more money?"

She laughed as each of them grabbed a shopping cart. She had a feeling both would be full by the time they were done. "Absolutely. I was thinking we should start with Sawyer's favorite junk foods, and move on to toys, then electronics." Some of her purchases would have to be paid for in the electronics department, and it would be simpler to pay for everything at once.

"Sounds like a plan," Matt agreed as they started toward the grocery section. Sarah had mentioned a few of his favorites on the ride home yesterday, and Taylor added those to her cart. He added a few more things Sawyer had enjoyed at his house, and the two of them moved onto the toy department.

"So, Taylor," he asked as they walked, "how did you and Kurt get back in touch? I have to admit, Jenny and I were quite surprised when he called Saturday and said you were back in town and the two of you were dating. When he came back to Clearfield, he told us the two of you had lost touch, and when he came over for dinner a few weeks back, he didn't mention that had changed."

"That's because it hadn't," Taylor admitted quietly. "I only got back into town last week. We actually met again when he pulled me over for speeding. He agreed to let me out of the ticket if I went out on a date with him, and, well . . . the rest is history."

"To be honest, given the way Kurt looked at you in high school, I thought the two of you would have been married years ago," Matt commented. "What happened, if you don't mind my asking?"

Taylor sighed as she followed him down one of the toy aisles and began placing board games in her cart. "That's a long complicated story, but I guess the short version is everyone knew how Kurt felt about me _except_ me."

"Someday maybe you'll tell me the long version," Matt said as he added some more games he knew Sawyer enjoyed, as well as some additional items for the guys' night he hoped to have.

Taylor gave a noncommittal nod as she placed one last game in her cart. "How did you know how Kurt felt about me?" she asked, as much out of curiosity as to change the subject. "Did he tell you?"

Matt shook his head. "Kurt would sooner have walked over hot coals back then than admitted that. Not because he was ashamed of his feelings for you," he hastened to add at her frown. "I always thought he did it to protect you."

"Because I was so much younger than him," Taylor said. "I know. He told me he wanted me to have the chance to meet guys my own age, be sure he was what I wanted before we got together."

Matt frowned. "Well, yes, that makes sense, but I think it was more than that. Kurt was a pretty sought-after guy in high school, and he didn't want the girls his own age making your life miserable because they figured out he was interested in you. He broke up with his first girlfriend because she was mean to you, and I don't think even he had figured out how he felt about you at that point."

"Lindsey Conner," Taylor supplied with a grimace. Her role in Kurt's life might have been short-lived, but the nickname Lindsey had coined for her during that time, 'Tagalong Taylor', had dogged her until she went away to boarding school. "I remember, but I had no idea Kurt knew she was unkind to me. He never did tell me why he broke up with her."

"I'm pretty sure he loved you even then; he just didn't know it yet," Matt told her. "It was around that time when I started to realize how he felt about you. Sometimes when he thought no one was looking, I'd catch him watching you with this . . . this look in his eyes. I don't know how to describe it, but . . ."

He didn't need to. She knew exactly the look he was referring to, a mixture of tenderness and intensity and something else, something she had never been able to identify back then but which she now knew was _longing_. She'd seen that look on the day before he left for college, as he told her she was his number one girl, but she'd been too young to understand what it meant, the deeper implication behind his words. Taylor closed her eyes briefly as sadness swept over her once again for all the lost years. If only she had known, had recognized . . .

It all could have been so different.

". . . I knew if I ever met a girl that I looked at the way Kurt did you, I was going to marry her," Matt finished. "And I did. I'm glad the two of you are finally getting the happy ending you deserve as well." He glanced at her left hand. "Although I see Kurt still hasn't gotten around to putting a ring on it. Maybe I need to have another talk with him."

"No need," Taylor laughed. "I have only been in town a week, Matt, and like you pointed out the other day, it has been kind of a whirlwind romance. Not to mention, Kurt has a lot on his plate right now, what with being sheriff and overseeing his business back in New York and his father dying. I'm sure he'll propose when he's ready. Probably sometime after the New Year would be my guess." Likely once Tom Weller was six feet under and no longer a hindrance to their happiness.

Given the way Kurt had looked at Taylor when he'd made that suggestion a couple days ago, Matt doubted it would be that long, but he kept the thought to himself. Kurt didn't need extra time to make up his mind; he'd been sure of his decision years ago, and no amount of other obligations was going to keep him from acting on it now that he knew she felt the same. Taylor was going to be one very surprised lady in the near future, he felt certain of it. "We'll see."

"Yes, we will," Taylor agreed with a shake of her head as she turned toward the electronics department, and he fell into step beside her. "Thanks again for helping me, Matt. I couldn't have done it without you. Please thank Jenny for me as well."

"You're welcome again. We were both happy to do it, and Jenny was thrilled when we got your text last night. She'd been on pins and needles waiting for you to get home and see if you liked what we picked out." He paused beside the video game display and began placing the items she'd need into his cart.

The furnishings they had selected were exactly what she had envisioned in her head. Not only that, they had situated them exactly where she wanted. "I owe you both one. More than one, actually."

"Oh, don't worry," Matt laughed. "We've already decided how you can repay us. I mentioned to Jenny that I was hoping to have a guys' night downstairs at your place after New Year's, and she thought it would be fun to have a get together with some of her lady friends upstairs while that's going on. If you and Kurt are okay with that."

"I'll check with him, but I'm sure he'd like that. It sounds like fun." She was already anxious to meet Jenny, and it would be nice to get to know some other ladies her own age in Clearfield as well. Reuniting with Kurt was certainly doing wonders for her social calendar, and she liked the change. She was going to have to continue that trend when she returned to New York, instead of burying herself in work as she had done in the past.

"You'll fit right in with Jenny's friends," Matt predicted. "And Sarah's sure to be on the guest list, so you'll already know one of them." He placed one final video game in the cart and moved over to the TVs. "How big a one do you want?"

"The biggest one they have," Taylor told him, moving toward the far end of the aisle where the largest ones were displayed.

Matt grinned. "I like the way you think, Taylor Shaw." He motioned for a store employee to help them, and in a surprisingly short amount of time, they were checked out and on their way out to Matt's truck.

"I know I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but I really do appreciate this, Matt," Taylor said as she helped load her purchases into the backseat. He and his buddies were going to finish getting Sawyer's surprise ready for her while she ran her other errand of the morning. She hugged him once he had loaded the final item inside. "Let us know when you and Jenny have worked out a time to come over for dinner, okay? I'm really looking forward to it."

"I'll talk to Jenny and let you know something soon," Matt promised. "Merry Christmas, Taylor."

"Merry Christmas, Matt," Taylor returned as she headed to her own vehicle. Her next stop was the fort Kurt had built her to pick up the art supplies she needed to draw the picture he had requested. She had wanted to draw it out here, but the weather had turned far too cold for that. She retrieved what she needed and headed back to her mom's.

The sound of muted voices greeted her ears as she stepped inside the house, and she followed them to the kitchen. Her mother and Maggie were seated at the table drinking coffee. "Have you told Taylor yet?" Maggie asked as she stepped into the doorway.

"Told me what?" Taylor asked. "Morning Mom, Maggie," she added dryly as they jumped, the looks of consternation on their faces almost comical as they turned to look at her.

Emma recovered first. "Taylor! I wasn't expecting you so early. I was just telling Maggie that I, uh . . . that I hadn't seen much of you the last few days, and I was hoping to come out to the cabin early tomorrow to visit for a while before dinner. If that's okay with you."

"Uh huh," Taylor said skeptically. She didn't know what those two had been talking about, but that definitely hadn't been the topic of conversation. They both looked as guilty as a dog that had just wet on the carpet. "That'll be fine, Mom." She looked from one to the other. "It's nice to see the two of you talking. I had no idea the two of you had become such good friends since my return."

If possible, their guilty expressions only deepened, and both appeared to be at a loss for words. "Relax, you guys. I only came over to work on one of Kurt's Christmas presents." She held up the art supplies as proof. "I'm gonna go find a quiet place to draw and leave you two to . . . whatever it is you're really doing." She was definitely going to sniff out what the two of them were up to, but it could wait until after the holidays.

She headed into the living room and seated herself cross-legged in front of the coffee table. She already knew what she wanted to draw and she closed her eyes for a moment to visualize it once more before picking up her pencil and getting to work.

She drew steadily for the better part of two hours, her hand never wavering, and she smiled when she finally laid her pencil down for the final time after applying one last finishing touch, knowing it was some of the best work she had ever done. She couldn't wait to see Kurt's face when he saw it for the first time.

"I'd forgotten how talented you were at that," Emma commented quietly, and it was Taylor's turn to be startled. She'd been so engrossed in her work that she hadn't even heard her mother enter the room. "I should have tried to talk you into attending art school instead of the Naval Academy."

Taylor smiled wryly. "I think we both know I wouldn't have listened."

"Still . . . I wish I had tried." Emma hesitated. "It's not too late, you know. I haven't touched the money I set aside for your college fund, and I'd be more than happy now to use it to send you to one in New York City. You're well off enough to support yourself while you're in school, and I'm sure Kurt would be supportive of the career change. Talent like yours shouldn't be wasted."

"I appreciate the offer, Mom, but—"

"At least think about it," Emma urged. "Being an FBI agent isn't the safest of professions, and I'd hate to see you and Kurt lose out on a future together now that you've found each other again." She didn't think he could survive losing Taylor again. She knew she couldn't. "Do you really want to put Kurt through the hell of wondering if you'll be coming at night when he sees you off to work every morning?"

"No, of course not," Taylor said as she stood, wincing a little at the stiffness from sitting so long. "Which is why I've decided to leave the FBI and partner up with Kurt in his PI business. I'm planning to turn in my notice when I go back to testify on a case in January."

"Really?" Emma asked. And then the full import of Taylor's words sank in. " _You're leaving the FBI_? Really?"

Taylor nodded, watching as her confirmation made her mom appear literally years younger. She'd never realized just how much her mother worried about her until that moment. "But please don't mention this to the Wellers. I think Kurt should be the one to tell them, but he and I haven't had a chance to discuss all the particulars yet, so I'm not sure when he'll mention it."

"My lips are sealed," Emma promised. Her eyes danced with a glee that Taylor didn't think was brought on entirely by the news of her career change, but she didn't have time to speculate on what else could be causing it. A glance at the clock on the wall told her Kurt would be heading home soon, and she wanted to frame and wrap his last present, as well as check out Matt's handiwork, before he arrived.

"Listen, Mom, I've got to run." Taylor hugged her mother before carefully rolling up her drawing, and headed for the door.

"Big plans tonight?" Emma inquired with that suspicious gleam in her eye once more.

"Yeah," Taylor said with a laugh. "We're going to be baking Christmas cookies for our guests tomorrow." Kurt had said something about making a pie as well, but that was all on him. If she got involved, the most important course for tomorrow's meal would inevitably be a flop. Decorating cookies, on the other hand, she thought she could handle. Even if hers were ugly, no one would care as long as they tasted good.

She shared that theory with Kurt when he arrived, and he laughed as he leaned in to kiss her. "And if they don't taste good?" he asked.

Taylor shrugged. "I haven't eaten anything you made yet that didn't."

"Nice try, Tee, but we're going to be making these together," Kurt told her. "Don't frown at me like that. It's a simple recipe, and I'm going to be doing it with you. You did say you wanted to learn to cook, after all."

"As I recall, all I said I wanted was to learn how to make one of your amazing omelets," Taylor corrected.

Kurt chuckled as he drew her into his arms. "But just think how impressed our families will be when they find out you had a hand in making them," he murmured persuasively in her ear.

Taylor groaned as she snuggled closer to him, conceding defeat. "I'm beginning to think you should be the hostage negotiator in the family. You're very good at persuading people to your point of view."

"I think criminals might find it a bit easier to resist my charms than you," he teased.

" _Everyone_ finds it easier to resist your charms than I do," Taylor shot back without missing a beat. "Except maybe my mother. By the way, she and your mom are up to something. I don't suppose you have any idea what that could be."

Probably planning their wedding. Kurt groaned inwardly, wishing he'd had the foresight to ask Emma to keep the news of his impending proposal to herself. He hadn't realized she and his mom had begun to grow close again. He cleared his throat nervously. "No idea. What makes you think they're up to something?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe the fact that they were wearing expressions similar to the one you've got on your face now." Taylor smiled at the look of consternation on his face as she leaned up to kiss him again. "It's okay. I like the fact that you're a terrible liar, so you can keep your secrets. For now." She spun out of his arms and led the way into the kitchen. "So. What do we do first?"

Kurt pulled out the ingredients they needed and began guiding her through measuring and mixing them in the proper order. The two of them settled into a comfortable routine, each of them taking half the dough once it was ready and putting it onto cookie sheets.

"What's next?" Taylor asked once they had pulled the last of them from the oven.

Kurt grinned at her. Somehow she had gotten a streak of flour in her hair, which made her look a little like a skunk, and a smudge of it on her cheekbone, but she had never looked more beautiful to him. "Marry me."

Taylor rolled her eyes. "I'm being serious here, Kurt."

"So am I," Kurt responded quietly. He had intended a much more eloquent proposal, but the words had tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them, the ring he had retrieved from his safety deposit box this morning burning a hole in his pocket. He fished it out as he went down on one knee before her, determined to do this right, and smiled up at her as her eyes filled with tears. "I thought the day our paths crossed again was the happiest of my life, but each day since then has surpassed the one before. I know this seems sudden, but I love you with all my heart, Taylor Shaw, and I don't want to waste a single moment of this second chance we've been granted. Will you be my wife?"

" _Yes_!" Taylor exclaimed softly as her tears spilled over down her cheeks, launching herself into Kurt's arms as he rose to meet her, the two of them embracing one another so fiercely, you couldn't tell where one ended and the other began. "Oh, Kurt, _yes_! I love you with all my heart as well, and there is nothing I want more in this world than to be your wife."

Kurt felt a tear track its way down his cheek as he stepped back slightly and pulled the ring from the box, feeling Taylor's hand tremble slightly as he took it in his and slid the ring on her ring finger.

It fit perfectly.

Taylor's eyes welled with tears again as she studied the emerald and diamond engagement ring with the infinity symbol down the sides. Not only did it fit perfectly, it _was_ perfect. If he had searched the world over, Kurt couldn't have found a more fitting expression of their love. "It's beautiful, Kurt."

"You really like it?" Kurt asked. "We can pick out another one together if you'd rather ha—"

Taylor cut him off with a kiss. "I don't just like it; I _love_ it. It's exactly the one I would have picked for myself if we _had_ gone ring shopping together. I have to ask, though: how did you know my ring size?"

"I called your mom and asked her," Kurt admitted, hesitating before he added, "when you were sixteen."

"When I was . . ." Taylor's voice trailed off as she stared at him. "You picked this ring out before you even knew if we'd become a couple. And held onto it all these years even though I walked away from you."

Neither of those were questions, but Kurt answered anyway. "Yes. I happened on it by chance and just thought it was perfect for you. I had faith that we'd eventually get together, and I guess I never completely lost hope."

"I'm glad you didn't," Taylor said quietly as her eyes lingered on the ring sparkling on her finger. "Thank you for never giving up on me, Kurt." Her eyes danced as she lifted them to his once more. "I can't believe Mom kept this a secret all these years. Has she seen it?"

"Not yet," Kurt told her. "I asked for her blessing to marry you yesterday, so I know she's anxious to do so. Want to drive over and show it to her?"

Taylor debated with herself briefly before shaking her head. "No, not right now," she said as she looped her arms around his neck and gave him a lingering kiss. "Right now there's just one thing I want to do."

"And what's that?" Kurt asked as she dropped her arms and started toward the hallway.

Taylor paused long enough to toss him a saucy look over her shoulder. "Why, make love to my fiancé, of course." She continued down the hallway to their bedroom.

Kurt raced after her the moment her words sank in.

It was a long time later before they got around to decorating the cookies.


	18. Chapter Seventeen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor woke up in her fiancé's arms on Christmas morning. It was still very early, the gray light of dawn not even on the horizon yet, but Kurt was already awake, his fingers idly stroking through her hair, his warm blue eyes fastened on her face as hers peeped open. "Merry Christmas, sleepyhead."

"Merry Christmas to you, too." She yawned. "What time is it?"

"A little after four." Kurt rolled onto his back, pulling Taylor with him, reluctant to get up but knowing he needed to start getting ready soon. If he knew his nephew, Sawyer would be waking his parents' household in the next hour or so, wanting to open his presents.

Taylor seemed to read his mind. "We should probably get a move on." She snuggled closer to him, bracing herself for a fight at what she was about to say. "I'm going with you, Kurt."

Kurt kissed the top of her head. "Okay."

"Really?" Taylor raised up on her elbows and stared down at him, now fully awake. "That's all you've got to say? _Okay_?"

Clearly she'd been expecting the reaction he would have had before he'd talked to Ben. "Well, I was about to suggest you take a shower with me. Save time and water. We can wash each other's backs."

" _Kurt_."

He turned serious at the warning in her voice. "Look, Tee . . ." He pulled her back down into his arms. "I'm not going to deny that my first instinct is always gonna be to protect you, but my talk with Ben the other day helped me to see that I can't do that by dictating to you who you can and cannot see. As much as I'd like you to never be in the same room—hell, the same building—as my father again, there's a bigger part of me that is so grateful you're going to be by my side this morning to help me through it."

"Always," Taylor assured him, touched by the thought he had put into this issue. "That's what partners are for. Stronger together, remember?" she said, parroting his own words back to him.

"So does that mean you've decided to wash my back for me in the shower this morning?" Kurt asked hopefully.

"As long as that's not a euphemism for anything other than washing your back, sure." Taylor playfully slapped a hand on his chest before rolling off him and out of bed. "We don't have time for monkey business this morning, mister. Mom will never forgive me if she isn't the first one to see my ring, so we need to stop by her house before we go to your parents'."

Kurt groaned good-naturedly as he got out of bed as well. "Fine. Shower only, no monkey business. But you owe me a rain check tomorrow," he stipulated.

"No can do again," Taylor said sympathetically as they headed for the bathroom. "Sawyer's staying with us tonight, remember? Your rain check will have to wait for another day."

"Engaged less than twenty-four hours and already upstaged by my own nephew," Kurt commented. "Remind me again why I agreed this sleepover was a good idea?"

Taylor grinned. "Because you love Sawyer very much and you don't want _him_ to feel upstaged by _our_ relationship. And because we weren't engaged when I invited him over," she added as she stepped into the shower, and he laughed as he followed her.

Contrary to her expectations, Kurt did manage to behave himself—for the most part—and they were dressed and fed and on their way much sooner than she had anticipated. Taylor reached for Kurt's hand as they made their way up the walkway and entered the house. "Mom?" she called softly, not wanting to wake her mother if she was still sleeping.

Emma emerged from the kitchen just as the smell of coffee wafted to her nose. "Merry Christmas, Kurt, Taylor. I thought you two might drop by, but I wasn't expecting you until later." After they had been to the Wellers. Given how last Saturday's visit had gone, she'd figured there was a good chance the two of them would need to blow off some steam before driving home.

Taylor grinned up at Kurt before pulling her left hand free of his. "And I thought you should be the first to see Kurt's Christmas present to me." She waved her hand in front of her mother.

" _Oh!_ " Emma gasped softly, tears welling in her eyes, as she grabbed hold of Taylor's hand and got her first good look at the ring she'd waited nearly a decade and a half to see. It was every bit as beautiful as she'd expected. Even knowing this moment was coming, somehow it was still a shock to see it on her daughter's finger. "Oh, you're _engaged! Finally!_ Congratulations!" She stepped forward and hugged Taylor fiercely, then pulled Kurt into their embrace as well. "I'm so happy for the two of you."

"Thanks, Mom," they both chorused, and then laughed in unison as well as they glanced sheepishly at one another.

Emma was just about to suggest that they sit down and join her for a cup of coffee when Kurt's phone chimed. He fished it out of his pocket and glanced down at the screen. "Sawyer's up," he said to Taylor. "He's anxious to start opening presents, but they're making him wait for us, so Mom wants us to get over there as quick as we can."

"I can't wait to hear all about Maggie's and Sarah's reaction when they spot that ring on your finger," Emma commented as she escorted them to the door. "Are you going to tell them or wait to see how long it takes them to notice it?"

Taylor glanced at Kurt, who shrugged, indicating the decision was up to her. She grinned. "I think we'll give them some time to see for themselves, and if they don't notice, we'll tell them before we leave."

"Would you like to come with us?" Kurt asked. He supposed they could also wait until this afternoon to announce their engagement, when Emma would be present, but just as she was curious about his mother's and sister's reaction, he was looking forward to seeing his father's. He wanted to see his face when he realized that in spite of everything he'd put them through, they were going to be together and happy long after he was a distant memory.

Emma considered it but shook her head. "No. I don't want to intrude on your family time, and to be honest, I really don't trust myself to be in the same room with Tom and remain civil."

Neither did he, and Kurt was grateful once more that Taylor was going to be by his side. He knew he could count on her to help him maintain his cool. "I understand." He leaned in and kissed Emma on the cheek. "Taylor said you wanted to come out early today, so we'll let you know when we're ready to go home. You can follow us out to the cabin and we'll fill you in on everything then."

"Sounds good," Emma said, giving him and Taylor one more hug before watching them get back into their vehicle and heading next door.

Taylor took a deep breath as she retrieved the presents she'd brought from the backseat. Kurt had argued against her bringing them, since they would be having their own gift exchange at home later, but she hadn't wanted to show up completely emptyhanded, so she'd brought them all one present each. She smirked as she closed the door and noticed he was carrying a bag as well. He must have sneaked it into the car while she was drying her hair. The big softie.

Kurt shrugged sheepishly at Taylor's raised eyebrow. "I couldn't very well let Sawyer's Auntie Taylor upstage me, now, could I?"

"Auntie Taylor, huh?" Taylor said dryly, but secretly she was pleased. Little did Kurt know, he might have the better gift now, but in a few hours, she was going to upstage him in a big way with her new nephew. She hoped.

Maggie was waiting for them in the entryway. "Merry Christmas, Kurt, Taylor." She hugged them both warmly as they returned the greeting. "Sawyer's just finishing up breakfast; he'll be along shortly." She led the way to the living room, thankful they would be able to get these first awkward moments out of the way without him present, and paused in the doorway. "Tom's already in here," she mentioned quietly as she entered.

Tom was seated in the recliner and he struggled to his feet as he caught sight of them. "Kurt. Taylor. Merry Christmas," he greeted as he started toward them.

Both Taylor and Kurt froze momentarily when they saw him. He'd gone downhill since they'd seen him last four days ago: he was slightly unsteady on his feet, his face ashen, and his voice no longer carried across the room.

Kurt reached for Taylor's hand as his father approached, pulling her to his side and shooting him a glance that clearly warned him not to come any closer. He was doing his best to remain civil, but if that bastard laid so much as a finger on his fiancée, all bets were off. He continued to glare at his father until the man backed off several steps.

"Merry Christmas, Tom," Taylor responded for the two of them when it became clear Kurt wasn't going to speak. "We should probably get these presents under the tree before Sawyer gets in here," she suggested to Kurt when he continued to glare at his father.

Her words seemed to break Kurt out of his trance. "Right." He tightened his grip on Taylor's waist as he guided them around his father, making sure his body was between the two of them as he did so.

"You need to relax a little, Kurt," Taylor told him quietly as they knelt down and began unloading their presents. How he acted this morning would likely set the tone for the entire day and she wanted it to be a good one. Christmas should be one of the happiest days of the year, and they had even more cause for celebration this year. She gently laid her left hand over his right, allowing the ring he had placed there to sparkle in the light, reminding him of all they had to look forward to. "I'm fine. _We're_ fine. I promise."

"Just fine?" Kurt teased, feeling some of the tension drain from his body as she smiled at him with a genuine light in her eyes. In spite of everything, Taylor was happy to be here, to be with _him_ , and he wasn't going to do anything to spoil her enjoyment of the day.

"Wonderful. Amazing. _Perfect_ ," she shot back, and he grinned as he leaned in to kiss her, his hand cupping her jaw to pull her closer, thinking all of those adjectives fit them perfectly and at the same time didn't even come close to describing what they had.

"Uncle Kurt?" Sawyer asked hesitantly as he skidded to a stop just inside the living room and spotted his uncle kissing his new girlfriend. His mom had convinced him that spending the night with them would be fun, but suddenly he wasn't so sure. Didn't Uncle Kurt know that girls had cooties?

Taylor's cheeks turned pink as they broke apart and she uttered a slightly embarrassed laugh, instinctively leaning in to Kurt as they looked up to see Sawyer standing a few feet away, Sarah just behind him. "Hey, little buddy," he greeted as he got to his feet and extended a hand to help Taylor up. "Ready to open some presents?"

"If you and Taylor can tear yourselves away from one another long enough to do that, that would be great," Sarah agreed dryly, the twinkle in her eyes letting them know she was only kidding.

"Ignore her," Kurt told Taylor, teasing right back. "She's just jealous because I've found the girl I'm going to spend the rest of my life with, and she's still single."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Keep telling yourself that, big brother. You know, when I thought to myself that you needed to stop living like a monk, this wasn't exactly what I had in mind."

"You're right," Taylor said to Kurt. "No one should be that cranky on Christmas morning. We need to find her someone of her own to cheer her up. She tried to set you up; it's only fair we return the favor."

"Can we open presents now or not?" Sawyer asked impatiently before Sarah could come up with a suitably sarcastic retort.

"Of course we can, Sawyer." Maggie was amused by the banter, but she had been just about to intervene when her grandson spoke up. "Why don't you pass everyone out a present to start with, and we'll all open them at the same time?"

"Okay," Sawyer agreed, and the adults took their seats as he dutifully began making the rounds of the room. "Here, Uncle Kurt," he said, handing him the gift Taylor had brought for him. He hesitated as he turned to her, unsure how to address her.

Thankfully, Kurt recognized his dilemma and intervened. "Give Auntie Taylor her present, Sawyer, and let's get this party started. I bet I can get my present opened before you do yours."

"Can not!" Sawyer contradicted as he all but tossed Taylor's present in her lap and raced to retrieve one of his own from under the Christmas tree. She left her own gift untouched for the moment and laughed as she watched uncle and nephew race each other, Kurt clearly going just slowly enough that Sawyer would beat him by a few seconds. He had chosen the present she had brought him as well, and she grinned as he ripped open the paper on the rubber band blaster pen. "Cool!" he exclaimed as he worked to get it free of the package, eager to try it out on his Uncle Kurt.

Kurt was already shaking his head at Taylor when he pulled his own present free of the wrapping paper. She grinned when he held up the apron she had bought him, embroidered with the words 'Kiss The Cook'. "You know, since you gave me this, you're going to have to do what it says," he told her, leaning in to steal a kiss.

She laughed as she scooted away slightly, wishing she could, but not wanting to make Sawyer uncomfortable again. "Only when you're wearing it," she shot back.

"Says who?" Kurt demanded.

"Me," she informed him. "My gift, my rules."

"I don't think that's how it works, Tee," he said, but before he could attempt to kiss her again, their attention was diverted by Maggie and Sarah's exclamations over their presents, and Taylor turned her attention to her own.

Once everyone had unwrapped their presents and showed them to the others, Sawyer began handing out the next round of gifts. "That's a pretty ring, Auntie Taylor," he said innocently as she was forced to reach for the present he was handing her with her left hand, since Kurt had a firm grip on her right and refused to release it when she tried to tug free.

"Ring?" Sarah asked, trying to crane her head around Sawyer to see what her son was talking about. "What ring?"

"Something the two of you need to tell us?" Maggie asked hopefully as Kurt and Taylor exchanged glances, smiling softly at one another.

Kurt cleared his throat. "I, uh . . . I asked Taylor to marry me last night, and she said yes. We're engaged."

The room went dead silent for a long moment before all hell broke loose. Sarah let out an ear-piercing shriek as she launched herself out of her seat and made a beeline for Taylor. Taylor barely had time to sit the present Sawyer had just handed her on the couch beside her before Sarah pulled her to her feet and hugged her so fiercely she thought her ribs might crack. Then she stepped back and grabbed her hand to examine the ring. " _Oh!_ It's beautiful." Kurt had gotten to his feet when Taylor did, and she hugged him as well before embracing her future sister-in-law once more. "Congratulations, you two."

Maggie had risen and rushed over to them as well. "Welcome to the family, Taylor. Officially," she added, since Taylor had always been a member of their family in everything but name. She drew both her and Kurt into a long embrace.

"Thanks . . . Mom," Taylor murmured in her ear as she hugged her back. The older woman's love and support meant more than she knew, more than Taylor would ever be able to express.

The three of them were so caught up in the moment, in one another, that none of them noticed Tom had struggled to his feet and joined them as well. He was standing about three feet away when they separated, smiling at them, his hands on Sawyer's shoulders, and Taylor felt her heart stop for a moment as Kurt tensed beside her, shooting his father a look that clearly warned him not to come any closer.

Tom held out a hand to them, still smiling, apparently unfazed by the anger blazing in Kurt's eyes or the coolness in Taylor's. "Yes, congratulations, Kurt, Taylor. I second that welcome to the family."

"Thank you," Taylor murmured politely, reaching out to give his hand a brief shake when it became obvious Kurt was not going to do so in an attempt to keep Sawyer from picking up on the tension between them. Judging by the way his eyes continued to dart back and forth between them, though, it was too little, too late. Probably because his uncle looked like a thundercloud and she had been unable to hold back a grimace at how tightly Tom gripped her hand. "Okay, everyone," she said with forced cheer, "what do you say we get back to opening presents?"

They all returned to their seats and did so, but some of the gaiety of the occasion had been lost, and Taylor was relieved when she and Kurt were finally able to make their excuses and depart.

"I'm sorry," Kurt said as soon as they were out of earshot of the house.

"For what?" Taylor was puzzled. His behavior certainly hadn't been above reproach in there, but under the circumstances, she didn't think it was anything he needed to apologize for. He'd done his best to remain civil, and overall, she thought he'd succeeded admirably. She was proud of him.

"For not shaking my father's hand, so you wouldn't have to," Kurt told her. "I should have realized how it would affect Sawyer and done it myself. I'm sorry, Tee."

"Kurt . . ." Taylor didn't know whether to laugh or cry. If the look on his face in that moment had been any indication, shaking Tom's hand would have ended in bloodshed. " _Don't be._ I can't say I liked doing it, but I've had years and countless hours of therapy to prepare me to handle it. You've only known about what he's done for a few days and you've had no time to come to terms with your feelings about it. You have _nothing_ to apologize for."

Kurt nodded slowly. "Ben suggested I might want to talk to someone about this, and after today I think he's right. How would you feel . . . would you mind if I tagged along to some of your sessions once we're back in New York?"

Taylor blinked and then a slow smile spread across her face. She had already been planning to broach the subject, but she'd thought she would have to coerce him into it. "Of course not. I think you'll really like Dr. Borden. He's one of the best psychologists I've talked to." Once Kurt got to know him, she suspected he might even want to have some sessions independent of her.

"Now," she said lightly, wrapping an arm around his waist and resting her head on his shoulder as they walked to their car, "what do you say we head on home so you can put on your new apron and fix us a world-class meal?"

"Only if you take its advice and kiss the cook every time you see him," Kurt countered.

Taylor laughed. "You drive a hard bargain, mister, but all right." Though most of those kisses would probably be on the cheek since her mom was going to be there.

There was no sense in reigniting the grandchildren debate, after all.

xxx

The festive mood was back in full swing by the time Maggie and Sarah and Sawyer arrived at their cabin. Taylor had texted her mother as they were leaving, and Emma had arrived shortly after them with a staggering armful of bridal magazines. From the looks of it, she must have started collecting them around the time Kurt bought the ring.

Kurt had taken one look at them and excused himself—the coward—with the excuse that he needed to get started on dinner preparations. Taylor had wanted to run for the hills as well, but since she had no such viable excuse, she was forced to sit beside her mother and thumb through a truly dizzying array of wedding paraphernalia. For a while, she found herself somewhat enjoying the experience, but by the time Kurt's family arrived, she was ready to hire a wedding planner. Or elope.

Emma seemed almost to read her mind as they heard a knock at the door and Kurt went to let his family inside. "Eloping's out of the question, Taylor. Kurt already promised me that he wouldn't let you talk him into that."

That left the door wide open for _him_ to talk _her_ into it, but Taylor wisely chose not to point that out. No sense in allowing her mother to seal off such a valuable loophole.

"Elope?" Sarah asked as she led the way into the living room. "You guys aren't talking about doing that, are you? Because I'm going to feel cheated if I don't get to see my big brother marry my childhood best friend turned sister."

"Relax, Sarah," Kurt told her. "No one is eloping." He ignored the dirty look Taylor shot him. He'd peeked in on her and Emma enough to know she'd been enjoying looking through those bridal magazines more than she would ever let on.

"Great!" Sarah said in relief. "So have you two lovebirds set a date yet or are you just going to wake up one morning and decide to haul us all down to the courthouse to tie the knot?" Judging by the speed of their courtship so far, she wouldn't put the latter past them, though she knew her mother and Emma would have a fit. Come to think of it, she might as well. She wanted the best for both of them, and that definitely wasn't it.

Taylor grinned impishly at Kurt before answering Sarah. "Not a chance. I've thought it over and I've decided that before I walk down the aisle, I should go on at least twice as many dates with the man I'm marrying as I have with the guys I've dated in the past."

"Why am I just hearing about this now?" Kurt questioned.

"Ooh, big brother," Sarah teased. "Looks like you've got your work cut out for you, after all. Way to go, Taylor. Make him work for it."

"Thanks, sis," Kurt said to her, then locked eyes with Taylor as he walked toward her slowly. "So, by my count, that would be what, nine more dates? I've already promised you one date night a week, so assuming you don't have any objections to planning the wedding while we do that, we could be married around the middle of February. A Valentine's Day wedding would be nice."

"No way," Taylor said. "My anniversary is _not_ going to be Valentine's Day, or any other holiday." And she wanted at least one Valentine's Day as part of a couple before she became a wife. "Sorry, but I'm not going to combine two special days, or make it that easy for you to remember. Try the middle of March."

"How about the first Saturday in March?" Kurt proposed as a compromise. He hadn't thought past proposing to Taylor, but once Sarah broached the subject, he had realized he really wanted it settled. "That will give us plenty of time to go out on plenty of dates and plan the wedding without having to rush.

"In fact—" he put his hand on her hips and pulled her close to him, "—I was thinking we should have one of those dates again this Friday night. Take in a movie, sit in the back row and eat all the popcorn and candy we can hold." He leaned in close and whispered, "Make out like teenagers."

Taylor chuckled. "How can I resist an offer like that? You've got yourself a date. Now," she added as she turned back to their guests, focusing especially on Sawyer, "what do you say we get back to opening presents again?"

"Yay!" Sawyer enthused, already making a beeline for the wrapped presents under their Christmas tree. Just as he had this morning, he handed them all out a gift before sitting down next to the tree to open his own, the spy vehicle Taylor had bought him. "Wow! Thanks, Auntie Taylor."

"You're very welcome, Sawyer." She couldn't wait for him to see the rest of his presents, especially the one downstairs, but first, she had a very special one for Kurt. She got up and retrieved the drawing she had made for him. "I think you should open this one next." She handed everyone else out a gift as well while he unwrapped it.

Kurt could hardly believe his eyes as he got his first glimpse of Taylor's drawing. He didn't know what he had been expecting when he'd asked her to make it for him, but this . . . this was a masterpiece. "Oh, Tee."

The main focal point of the drawing was this cabin, amazingly detailed and drawn largely from memory and imagination, he suspected, since the foliage surrounding it proclaimed it to be the springtime here she had yet to see. A man and a woman were seated in the swing on the porch and though he couldn't make out the faces, he knew it was them. In each of the four corners was a miniaturized version of a scene from their childhood: the two of them fishing on a nearby bridge, playing in front of their fort, climbing a tree together, and huddled together around a campfire.

It was an abbreviated story of their lives in picture form.

"Do you like it?" Taylor asked anxiously.

Kurt swallowed around the lump in his throat. "No, Tee, I don't like it; I _love_ it. It's perfect. In fact, it's so wonderful that I think I'm gonna have to take it back to New York with us where I can see it every day. It's too special to only see once in a while when we're down here on vacation."

"I'll draw you another one for here then," Taylor promised as he turned it to show everyone else and then gently sat it down, immediately reaching for her hand to thread their fingers together.

They finished opening all their presents—at least the ones that were upstairs—Emma and Maggie and Sarah just as enthused with theirs as Sawyer and Kurt had been. They all took turns passing their gifts around for everyone to examine and admire, and then each of them shared what they were most thankful for this holiday season. Unsurprisingly, for nearly every one of them, it was having found one another again. They all laughed when Taylor admitted she had never been so glad to be pulled over for speeding.

"It was quite a coincidence," Taylor said to Kurt. "That you were on the exact road I was coming into town on at the exact time I came through."

Sarah snorted. "There was nothing coincidental about it. Mom insisted on him going out there early that morning. Said she'd been seeing kids speeding along that stretch of road and he needed to put a stop to it before someone got hurt. Of course, there was no way for her to have known that you were on your way back into town and that you would be speeding."

Wasn't there? Taylor wasn't as convinced of that, but she knew now was not the time to dispute it, not with Sawyer present. She filed Sarah's statement away to review later, along with all the other questionable occurrences that had taken place since her return. The conversation moved on, and she did her best to take part in it, but a part of her thoughts continued to linger on what she had just learned.

Finally, she recalled that she had one more present left to give Kurt and Sawyer, and she was just about to suggest that they adjourn to the basement to see it when Kurt excused himself to finish getting dinner ready. She started to call him back, but decided to wait when she realized she hadn't eaten anything since early this morning. It would be a nice after-dinner surprise for the two of them.

As she had expected, Kurt's dinner was delicious and even his family, who had had a large meal mere hours before, requested seconds of everything. "So, Sawyer," Emma asked in between bites of pie, "I hear you're staying the night with your Uncle Kurt and Auntie Taylor tonight. Are you looking forward to that?"

"Yeah," Sawyer said hesitantly. "I guess so." Auntie Taylor had certainly given him some cool gifts, but he still barely knew her, and if she and Uncle Kurt were going to kiss a lot, it wasn't going to be fun at all.

Taylor set her fork down and turned toward Sawyer. "You don't have to stay if you don't want to, Sawyer, but before you make up your mind, I do have one more present for you. I think you and Uncle Kurt should go downstairs and check it out."

"Let me guess," Sarah said dryly as Sawyer's face lit up at the news. "Plan B."

"What?" Kurt was confused but Sawyer was already pushing his chair back and leaping to his feet, and he had no choice but to follow him.

By the time Taylor and the other women made it downstairs, Sawyer was loudly exclaiming over several of the video games on the TV stand beneath the large flat screen TV. Kurt was turning slowly in a circle, taking in the room's transformation with a dumbfounded look on his face.

The old couch had been removed, and a new sectional sofa took up most of the two walls opposite the TV, a long wooden coffee table situated in front of it. The adjoining kitchenette now sported a new refrigerator and microwave, and a variety of snack foods were neatly arranged on the counter.

She had built him a man cave, Kurt realized, not sure whether to be pleased that she thought so much of him that she would spend what must have been an exorbitant amount of money or worried that she felt the expense was worth it in order to carve out a place to get him out of her hair. He turned to her to pose that question teasingly, but her eyes were on Sawyer, a smile lighting her lips as he jumped around gleefully, and he felt his heart flood with love for her anew as he realized why she had really done it.

"Well? What do you think?" Taylor asked, turning to Kurt as she felt his eyes on her.

"It's . . . it's wonderful, Tee. I'd say you shouldn't have, but—" he glanced back to where Sawyer was animatedly explaining one of his favorite video games that he played at Mr. Lane's house to his bemused audience, "—I understand why you did. Of course, you do realize that Sawyer is probably never going to want to go home now."

Taylor laughed softly. "Yeah, Matt warned me about that. Truly, I'm not going to mind having Sawyer over often, though. He's a great kid, and it'll be good practice for dealing with our own someday." She had missed out on the babysitting experience a lot of girls got as teenagers.

"Matt helped you with this?" Kurt shook his head as soon as he posed the question. "Of course he did." How else would she have known what to get? Video games were a little outside her purview.

"Matt and Jenny," Taylor confirmed. "And there's still more to see. Hey, Sawyer," she called. "Come check out the other rooms with me." She reached for Kurt's hand, tugging him with her as she started down the hallway, and Sawyer ran after them. The first room contained a poker table and a pool table, neither of which interested Sawyer much, though Kurt's eyes lit up at the sight, but if there was any doubt still in his mind about the sleepover, the second virtually guaranteed he would stay.

The large round table in the center of the room was piled high with board games, as well as one more present for Sawyer to unwrap. "It's yours," Taylor confirmed when he looked from it to her with a question in his eyes, and they stepped into the room to make room for their guests to watch as he unwrapped it.

Sawyer grinned from ear to ear as he held up the robot. "Look, Mom! Isn't it cool?"

"It sure is," Sarah agreed. "And what do you say to Auntie Taylor for getting it for you?"

"Thanks, Auntie Taylor." Sawyer hesitated only a moment before rushing over to her and holding out his arms for a hug.

Taylor's eyes were misty as she knelt down and wrapped her arms around the boy, savoring their first embrace. "So here's the deal, Sawyer," she said when she drew back. "This downstairs is what's known as a man cave. Do you know what that is?"

Sawyer shook his head.

"That means that this area is off-limits to girls from now on—"

"Unless you want to invite them down here," Kurt stipulated hastily. He understood that Taylor was trying to give Sawyer his space, let him get to know her on his terms, but that would never happen if he thought he _couldn't_ ask her down here to interact with them.

"Right," Taylor agreed. "Unless you want to invite them down here. So if you decide to stay tonight or any time you come over, you and Uncle Kurt can come down here and play to your hearts' content."

"I want to stay," Sawyer admitted shyly. His Auntie Taylor was actually pretty cool. For a girl. If Uncle Kurt had to get married, he was glad it was going to be to her.

She was going to be an awesome aunt.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

The rest of their guests had left shortly after they returned upstairs, and Sawyer had immediately dragged Kurt back downstairs to their newly acquired man cave. Taylor curled up on the couch with the romance novel that had been one of Sarah's Christmas gifts to her, but she had been up since early this morning, and it quickly lulled her to sleep.

 _"_ _How are you liking our little town so far?" Tom Weller asked as he and Vanessa approached the tree where Taylor was perching._

 _"_ _Oh, I love it here," Vanessa gushed. "Everyone here is so friendly and helpful. I hope Kurt and I are able to come back often for visits once the baby's born."_

 _Baby? The blood rushed in Taylor's ears at Vanessa's words and she grabbed a solid branch to steady herself. Surely she couldn't mean . . . Surely Kurt wouldn't have . . . No. The baby wasn't his; it simply couldn't be. He might not ever see her in a romantic light, but to settle for someone like Vanessa . . . Pain like she had never known lanced through her heart even as her mind continued to try to deny what she had heard._

 _Tom Weller was similarly surprised. "You and Kurt are expecting? He didn't mention that. I guess I didn't realize it was so serious between you two."_

 _Vanessa gave a phony nervous laugh. "Oh, dear. Please don't tell him I told you. I'm sure he wanted to surprise you himself, but I didn't want to announce the pregnancy until after the first trimester."_

 _"_ _Your secret's safe with me," Tom assured her. "Anything for the mother of my first grandchild."_

 _Vanessa smiled up at him. "I'm glad to hear you say that. To tell you the truth, it may be fortuitous that I let it slip. I've been observing the dynamic between Kurt and your neighbor girl, and I have to say, I'm very concerned. It's obvious she has quite a crush on your son."_

 _"_ _Taylor?" Tom laughed. "I don't think you have anything to worry about on that score. I won't deny she has a crush on Kurt, but I know my son. He's unfailingly loyal and if he's chosen to be with you, he won't waiver in that commitment. Besides, Kurt doesn't live in Clearfield any longer, and Taylor is away at boarding school. The two of them rarely see one another anymore."_

 _"_ _Still—" Vanessa drew the word out, her intonation decidedly less friendly than it had been a moment ago, "—I would prefer to be sure. My own father was never around, and I want more for my child. I want you to go with me to convince little Miss Taylor Shaw to stay the hell away from your son."_

 _Tom stiffened. "Little Miss Taylor Shaw, as you so contemptuously refer to her, has been a part of our lives since she was born. My wife and I love her like another daughter, and she's practically a little sister to Kurt and Sarah. You may be carrying my first grandchild, but I have a sneaking suspicion she's more a part of this family than you'll ever be. I won't help you." He turned and started walking away._

 _Taylor felt her grief ease slightly at Tom's staunch defense of her, but the relief didn't last long._

 _"_ _Oh, I think you will," Vanessa countered smoothly, dropping the feigned pleasantry._

 _"_ _And why would I do that?" Tom asked as he turned back to her._

 _Her smile made Taylor's blood run cold as she closed the distance Tom had put between them. "Because if you don't, I'll tell your wife and son how you really feel about the girl you claim to love like a daughter. How do you think they'll react when they learn that you're secretly lusting after a fifteen-year-old they genuinely care about?"_

 _Taylor nearly laughed out loud at Vanessa's ludicrous accusation. Tom Weller's interest in her wasn't sexual; never once in all the time they'd spent alone together had he attempted to touch her anywhere inappropriate. He'd provided nothing more than a sympathetic ear in which to pour out her difficulties with her mother and her unrequited love for his son._

 _"_ _You're crazy, lady," Tom Weller hissed._

 _"_ _Am I?" Vanessa gave a tinkling little laugh. "I may not have had a dad, Mr. Weller, but I did have a stepfather. He said he loved me like a daughter too—and every time my mom left for work, he showed that love by taking me into their bedroom and molesting me. And the way he looked at me when he thought people weren't watching? It's the exact same way you look at sweet little Taylor."_

 _"_ _I don't know what you think you saw—" Tom began._

 _"_ _What I know I saw, you mean," Vanessa corrected. "If there's one thing my experience taught me, it's how to recognize men like you. You hide it well, but for someone who knows what they're looking for . . . I knew exactly what you were five minutes after Taylor walked through your front door."_

 _Taylor looked from one to the other as the silence lengthened between them, willing Tom to defend himself, to tell Vanessa that she was imagining things, that he had never thought of her in that light. The expression on his face put the first chink in her armor of disbelief._

 _"_ _Do you take me for a fool, young lady?" Tom asked, desperately trying to find a way out of the corner she was backing him into. "You don't have any proof against me, only suspicions that are colored by your own traumatic experiences. My wife and son will never believe such outlandish allegations."_

 _"_ _Maybe not," Vanessa allowed, "but if you were willing to take that chance, you would have kept on walking when I first confronted you. You stayed because deep down, you don't believe your family's love for you will be strong enough to overcome their doubts about what you are, do you? You know that even if they dismiss my accusations, they'll never quite look at you the same. There will always be that kernel of suspicion in the back of their minds every time they see you with Taylor._

 _"_ _Relax, Mr. Weller," Vanessa advised, relishing the man's sickly look. She had him right where she wanted him now. "I have no interest in outing your dirty little secret. What I'm proposing is a trade that will be beneficial to the both of us."_

 _"_ _There's nothing you could offer me that I want," Tom spat._

 _"_ _Really?" Vanessa arched an eyebrow. "Not even Taylor?" He looked intrigued in spite of himself and she smiled. "She won't give you the time of day, will she? She's so enamored with Kurt that she can't see how much you care about her. It must be maddening to have her so close, day after day, and yet still be so far from being able to act on those feelings. Help me now, and with your son out of the way, you'll have a real shot at changing that. The girl will need a shoulder cry on, after all, and who better than Kurt's own father? It's a win-win for both of us."_

 _Tom took a step back, defiance warring with desire in his eyes. Taylor clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from moaning, from losing the contents of her churning stomach all over the ground at their feet, but she lost her balance as she did so, and was forced to make a desperate grab for the limb to keep from toppling to the ground at their feet._

 _She might as well have done so, she realized a moment later, as two sets of eyes locked onto hers, one horrified, one amused._

 _"_ _Taylor . . ." Tom forced her name past suddenly dry lips, time seeming to stand still as the two of them stared at one another._

 _She had to get out of here, Taylor thought suddenly. She had to get away. She descended the tree in a rush, making a desperate break for freedom, for the safety and security of her home, but before she had gone three feet, strong arms enveloped her and a hand clamped over her mouth as she opened it to scream._

"No," Taylor whimpered as she came back to wakefulness. "Please, no. Let go of me." Her eyes flew open and she sat up quickly, sucking in several heaving breaths as she recognized her surroundings and realized she was safe.

"Auntie Taylor?"

Taylor's head snapped to the left. Sawyer was standing a few feet away, watching her as if she might suddenly sprout a second head. "Hey, Sawyer. Come sit down, kiddo." She patted the couch next to her and he reluctantly did as she asked. "I was just having a bad dream. Do you ever have any of those?"

"Sometimes," Sawyer admitted, relaxing slightly. "But I didn't think you could have them when you were grown up."

Oh, if only. They were worse when you were an adult, because then you knew monsters did in fact exist, and exactly what they were capable of. Or maybe her view of that was colored by her own past.

"When I have one, Mommy gives me a hug," Sawyer continued, oblivious to the turmoil of Taylor's thoughts. "It always makes me feel better. Will a hug make you feel better, Auntie Taylor?"

"I'd like that very much, Sawyer," Taylor told him, blinking back tears as he flung his little arms around her.

"Hey, Sawyer," Kurt called as he ascended the stairs. "What's taking so long, little buddy? Weren't you able to convince Auntie Taylor to come play a game . . ." His voice trailed off as he appeared in the doorway of the living room and took in the scene before him. ". . . with us?" he finished more quietly.

"I haven't asked her yet," Sawyer informed him. "Auntie Taylor had a bad dream, and I had to give her a hug to make her feel better."

"Is that so?" Kurt asked as his eyes met Taylor's over Sawyer's head. "Good idea, buddy. I think I'd better give her one as well." He crossed the room as Sawyer drew back and pulled her into his arms. "Are you okay?" he murmured into her ear.

"Mmmhmm," Taylor told him as she snuggled closer for a long moment before reluctantly pulling away. "Now . . . what's this I hear about a game?"

Sawyer jumped up and tugged on her hand to lead her back downstairs. "Me and Uncle Kurt want you to come play Uno Attack with us. Please, Auntie Taylor?"

"How could I refuse?" she said with a laugh as she followed him down the stairs. "You'll have to teach me how to play, though."

Sawyer was more than happy to do just that, and soon the game was underway. Taylor could feel Kurt's eyes on her as they played, and she smiled occasionally to reassure him. They played for nearly an hour before Sawyer started to yawn uncontrollably, and they traipsed back upstairs to put him to bed.

Taylor headed to their bedroom to get ready for bed herself while Kurt finished up with Sawyer. She was just about to crawl under the covers when he returned. He took a seat beside her on the bed and pulled her onto her lap, cuddling her as close as he'd wanted to do since Sawyer told him about her nightmare. "Want to talk about it?"

"It's not a big deal, Kurt," Taylor said softly, not wanting to burden him with the details of her dream. He still hadn't talked to her about his own feelings about what his father had done.

"Have you had this dream before?" Kurt asked. Her silence gave him his answer. "This has to do with my father, doesn't it? Talk to me, Tee," he pleaded when she remained stubbornly silent.

Taylor blew out a breath. "Yeah. Sometimes I dream that he saw me that day in the tree, that he got a hold of me, and—" She couldn't bring herself to finish, but she saw that Kurt understood. "I dreamed it pretty frequently when I was younger, but it's been years since I've had that dream."

"Do you think it was brought on by seeing my father this morning?" Kurt asked. "Because now that Christmas is over, we don't ever have to go back over there. Mom and Sarah and Sawyer can come out here to visit, or—"

"No," Taylor interrupted hastily. She could feel his confusion and pulled back to see his face. "No, I want to confront him one more time." It was what she had come back to Clearfield to do. I want to know why he thought he could do this to me, and how he thought he would get away with it. I want him to know that I know what he planned to do, that his family knows, and that he's the one who has ultimately lost everything. I _need_ to do this, Kurt."

Kurt kissed her forehead. "Then that's what we'll do." The sooner, the better, as far as he was concerned. He was so ready to be done with his father. "I can free up my schedule in the morning if you want to do it when we take Sawyer back home. I'm sure Sarah can find some errands for them to run."

Taylor nodded and he kissed her forehead one more time before getting up to prepare for bed himself. She was half-asleep by the time he crawled into bed next to her, but she willingly snuggled into his arms as he reached for her, settling her against him spoon-fashion. She went right to sleep, but it took him much longer to drift off.

Morning came quickly, and before he knew it, before he was ready, Kurt found himself making his way up his parents' walkway hand-in-hand with Taylor, Sawyer skipping on ahead. He'd texted Sarah to ask her to make herself scarce and she met them on the porch.

"Morning, Kurt, Taylor," she greeted, trying hard to remain upbeat in the face of their somber expressions, inwardly wondering what upheaval this visit would bring to her family. "Did you have a good time last night, Sawyer?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer exclaimed. "Uncle Kurt and I put the robot Auntie Taylor bought me together, and then we all played Uno Attack till it was time for bed. Can I come back again tonight?" he asked hopefully.

Kurt ruffled his nephew's hair affectionately. "Not tonight, little buddy." He wanted Taylor all to himself this evening. And tomorrow night they were going to the movies. "Maybe Saturday or Sunday, if it's okay with your mom."

Sawyer looked to Sarah. "Saturday it is," she agreed. "Come on, kiddo. We've got Christmas presents to exchange."

"Do I have to?" Sawyer whined. "Can't I stay here with Uncle Kurt and Auntie Taylor?"

"Sorry, kiddo," Kurt intervened before Sarah could answer. "I've got to go to work in a little while, and Auntie Taylor has things to do today as well."

"I do?" Taylor asked once they were out of earshot and the two of them turned to go in the house.

"You do," Kurt confirmed. "I thought you could visit with your mom for a while, and then spend the rest of the day at the station with me. Ben wants to meet you, and I'd like to introduce my other officers to my fiancée as well."

"I'd like that," Taylor smiled, leaning in for a kiss. It faded quickly as Maggie let them into the house and she followed them into the living room. Tom Weller was once again seated in his recliner, looking as if he hadn't moved since they'd left yesterday, but this time he made no effort to rise as they entered.

"Kurt, Taylor," he greeted weakly. "I wasn't expecting to see the two of you again anytime soon."

"I'm sure you weren't," Kurt responded, his voice hard. "Personally, I would have preferred to never see you again, but Taylor has something she needs to say to you." He took a seat on the couch and threaded his fingers through Taylor's as she sat down next to him.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?" Tom asked indifferently.

"I want you to know I overheard you talking to Vanessa all those years ago," Taylor told him. "I know what you were planning to molest me." She paused, but he made no attempt to deny it, his expression remaining unchanged. "What I don't know—what I've never been able to figure out—is _why_. What did I ever do that made you think of me in that way?"

Tom was silent for so long she didn't think he was going to answer. " _You_ didn't do anything," he said at length. " _Kurt_ did."

Of all the responses she had imagined, she never could have anticipated _that._ Taylor sat back in stunned silence as both Kurt and Maggie burst out, " _What?_ "

"You're blaming _our son_ for this now?" Maggie was disgusted. "Is there no end to your lack of accountability?"

"No, Mom, let him talk," Kurt told her. "I want to hear exactly how it's my fault he decided to molest the girl I loved."

"You were the one who put the idea in my head," Tom told him. "I never thought of Taylor that way until you started talking about how beautiful she was, how unique and amazing. How could I not notice her after that?"

Kurt shot to his feet. "I don't know, _Tom_ ," he said, emphasizing his father's name to make it clear he wouldn't be calling him _Dad_ any longer. "Maybe because you already had a beautiful, unique and amazing wife of your own?"

Tom shrugged. "It wasn't as if things were particularly good between us at the time. Hadn't been for a while."

"If you were that unhappy, Tom, you could have divorced me," Maggie spoke up. "You could have found yourself a girlfriend your own age on the side and had an affair. What you couldn't do is plot to force your attentions on an underage girl, a girl we welcomed into our home and I love like a daughter. As awful as it would have been, I think I could have forgiven you for the affair, but this . . . I can't forgive you for this."

"Well, I'll be out of your hair soon enough," Tom told her. "The way I feel, I'll be lucky to make it much past the New Year."

"You'll be out of my hair much sooner than that, Tom," Maggie told him, and had the satisfaction of finally seeing a hint of fear appear in his eyes. "Dying at home is a privilege, not a right, and from where I stand, it's one you haven't earned. I'm done caring for you, and Sarah can't do it all on her own. So you're going to get up and get your butt in our car, and I'm having you admitted to the hospital."

"Maggie," Tom said desperately. " _Please_. Don't do this. I'm begging you." Her eyes hardened at his pleas, and he clenched his jaw. "I won't go. You can't make me."

Maggie laughed. "Our son's the county sheriff, and his fiancée is a federal agent, Tom. You can do this the easy way or the hard way, but whichever you choose, I assure you, you are going."

"I'd be more than happy to escort you if he gives you any trouble, Mom," Taylor said mildly. Inwardly, she was cheering Maggie on.

"You'll regret this," Tom threatened as he slowly rose from his chair. "Sarah doesn't know what I've done. She'll never forgive you—"

"Sarah may not know what you've done, but she's too smart not to suspect," Maggie corrected him. "In fact, she probably thinks it's even worse than what actually happened. She and Sawyer will probably be the only visitors you'll have left in the hospital, Tom, so I'll make you a deal, even though you don't deserve it: I'll keep my mouth shut about what you've done so long as you tell her you _wanted_ to be admitted to the hospital. But if I hear you've spread so much as one lie about any of us—and trust me, I _will_ hear—you won't just die away from home, you'll die alone. Comprende?"

Tom's shoulders slumped in defeat as he nodded, and he shuffled away to pack a bag.

"Are you sure you want to do this, Mom?" Kurt asked once he was out of earshot. "Sarah—"

"I've never been more sure of anything in my life," Maggie interrupted. "I can't do this another minute, Kurt. I shouldn't have to feel like a prisoner in my own home, and I refuse to continue living in a situation where my son and daughter don't feel comfortable dropping by to visit me. I'm sure Sarah will be unhappy at first, but I think she'll come to see this is best for all of us."

Kurt nodded as he turned to Taylor. "Would you mind going with them to the hospital? I'm going to track down Sarah and do my best to explain this, and either Mom or I will drive you back here once she arrives."

"Okay," Taylor said quietly. Like Maggie had sad, Sarah was smart. She was going to have a very hard time understanding why her dad was okay when she left the house and wanting to be checked into the hospital less than an hour later. "Kurt—"

"I'm okay, Taylor," he assured her. He pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. "We're all gonna be okay."

"You promise?" she asked, reliving the conversation they'd had before he left for college.

Kurt willingly played his part. "I promise, Tee," he returned as he pulled her into his arms. "I promise."

This time it was a promise he would be able to keep.


	20. Chapter Nineteen

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

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 **A/N:** Thanks to all who have read and reviewed. I apologize for not responding, but it's been a busy week. Enjoy!

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 _Two weeks later_

Tom Weller lived only eleven days after being admitted to the hospital.

Taylor tightened her grip on Kurt's hand as the priest's eulogy drew to a close. Kurt had been stoic all through the funeral—ever since they'd received word of his father's death, really—and she was worried about him. No matter what the man had done, Tom was still his father, and Kurt needed to mourn his loss in order to properly move on. She knew from firsthand experience how crippling holding onto that anger could be.

She would make a point to talk to him about it later when they were alone, she decided as well-wishers began to file by and she was forced to let go of Kurt's hand to shake theirs. Maggie had chosen to have Bill cremated rather than spend eternity next to him, but in deference to Sarah and Sawyer (and appearances), she had agreed to this memorial service.

It was surprisingly well-attended, though few of those present had known Tom Weller personally. The vast majority were friends or coworkers of Maggie and Kurt and Sarah. Matt and Jenny were here, as well as Ben and his wife Amy, and a number of Kurt's officers that were off-duty.

She breathed an inward sigh of relief as the last of the mourners filed past, and they were finally free to leave. They had made plans to have lunch at Maggie's, since friends had been dropping off food there since word of Tom's death got out, and Taylor turned to collect Emma so they could head over there.

The ride was accomplished in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Taylor glanced over at Kurt occasionally as she drove, concerned to see him gazing out the passenger window away from her during most of the trip. He must have sensed her eyes on him, because he reached for his hand and smiled reassuringly as they headed into the house. "I'm okay, Tee."

 _Okay_ was the last word he should be using to describe himself after leaving his father's funeral, but she had no choice but to let it go for now. Maggie had headed for the kitchen immediately upon entering the house, and in a surprisingly short amount of time, they sat down to lunch, each of them doing their best to ignore Tom Weller's empty chair at the head of the table.

Conversation was stilted during the meal, since they were divided into two camps: the majority, who were torn between relief and regret at Tom's passing, and those who genuinely missed him. Taylor had never been so glad for a meal to end, but her relief was short-lived.

Sawyer asked to be excused to go upstairs to play video games, and once he was gone, Maggie and Emma exchanged glances. Emma cleared her throat. "We, uh . . . we have a confession to make."

"Oh, god," Sarah groaned. "Not another one."

Kurt shot his sister a quelling glance, but to his surprise, rather than seeming nervous or upset, Taylor laughed softly. "Is this the part where you tell me the two of you were in cahoots to get me and Kurt together?"

" _What?_ " Kurt and Sarah chorused, just as Maggie asked, "What gave us away?"

"It's true?" Kurt demanded in disbelief, glancing from his mom to Emma, and they both hung their heads slightly as they nodded. He turned to Taylor. "But . . . how did you know?"

"Your girlfriend—excuse me, fiancée's—a crack FBI agent, that's how," Sarah teased. "She wouldn't be much of an investigator if she couldn't smoke out the devious machinations of two small-town, middle-aged neighbors."

"I resent that," Maggie said playfully. "Who are you calling middle-aged? Haven't you heard? Sixty is the new forty."

Kurt grinned at Taylor. "I guess I made the right decision in making you my new partner, then."

"That's great," Sarah said impatiently, "but can we get back to how you figured out our moms were setting the two of you up? Which I'm more than a little curious to hear how they managed, since talking about you was taboo."

So was she. "Well, it wasn't anything earth-shattering," Taylor responded. "Just a lot of little things that didn't quite add up." She listed them. Her mother's foresight in purchasing a new wardrobe for her. The inclusion in that wardrobe of sexy lingerie and swimsuits for a hot tub Kurt couldn't recall telling her he possessed. The whispered conversation she had interrupted between her mother and Maggie. "I knew for sure, though, when you mentioned on Christmas that Maggie had insisted Kurt patrol that stretch of road he pulled me over on."

"I had a feeling that might have given it away from the look on your face," Emma commented. "Taylor has a habit of driving too fast when she's nervous or stressed," she told Kurt. "Maybe you can finally break her of that. I'm sure you can come up with a much better method of alleviating tension."

"Mom!" Taylor scolded, her cheeks turning an interesting shade of pink.

Kurt grinned at Emma as he reached for Taylor's hand. "Don't worry, Mom. You'll get those grandchildren you're wanting all in good time."

Taylor muttered something that sounded suspiciously like, "Don't be too sure of that." Kurt glanced at her, and she smiled at him as she cleared her throat. "Well, I _may_ drive too fast, Mom, but you always stall when you're trying to avoid talking about something. Which you're doing now. So spill."

False pretenses? What the hell did that even mean? She already knew her mom's real goal had been to set her up with Kurt. Taylor frowned. "I'm going to need a little more information than that, Mom."

"Right." Emma blew out a breath. "Right. I should probably back up, start at the very beginning."

"A very good place to start," Taylor quipped.

Her mom shot her a look that silenced her. "Okay. Well, it started when Kurt came back to town. He began dropping by to visit me, and gradually we started sharing our favorite memories of you. Nothing . . . nothing recent, of course," she clarified hastily, and Taylor nodded for her to continue.

"That went on for a while, and we got closer and closer. I could see how much he missed you, how much it bothered him not to have closure about why you had left, and it broke my heart because I knew, I _knew_ , that you missed him just as much." _Loved_ him just as much. "That went on for a while, because I kept telling myself that no matter my feelings on the subject, I needed to respect your wishes. I'd always felt that the Wellers must have _some_ inkling of why you had left, and I clung to that belief. But then Maggie came to see me."

All eyes turned to Maggie. "I unloaded on Emma," she admitted with a slight laugh. "I'd seen the same things she had in Kurt, the way he gravitated toward her as a way of maintaining his connection with you—" she glanced at a teary-eyed Taylor, "—and one day I just couldn't take it anymore. I marched over there and told her that it was all well and good if her daughter had moved on and was happy, but even if she never offered a word of explanation to the rest of us, she needed to let my son know in confidence so he could move on as well."

"Which of course, I couldn't do," Emma supplied. "Because I had no idea either. But Maggie's outburst finally cleared away all doubts that either she or Kurt knew anything about what had happened all those years ago, and suddenly I couldn't stop thinking about how _tragic_ it was that the two of you felt the same way about one another, but would never know it. Finally, I couldn't stand it anymore, and I began asking you to come home for a visit. But you were resistant to the idea."

Because she had known that there was little chance she could do so without coming clean to the Wellers, and she had wanted to spare them that pain. She'd had no way of knowing that her staying away had caused more than it solved. "But then you were diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor, and I had no choice but to come home for Christmas."

Emma was silent, and Taylor frowned as she began to get an inkling of where this was going. "Is that what you meant by false pretenses? The cancer's more treatable than you let on?" Surely she didn't mean she had faked the diagnosis altogether. "Mom?" she prompted. "You told me you were seeing an oncologist."

"I _am,_ " Emma assured her hastily. "Just not as a patient. I'm seeing him romantically. I was nervous about telling you that, and it just came out . . . wrong."

"I'll say," Taylor said. "Just for future reference, next time you decide to break news like that, you might want to lead with the man's name, and then mention his occupation." She paused as the implications of that news began to sank in. "So you _don't_ have cancer? You're not sick at all?"

"No," Emma confessed shamefacedly. "I never, _never_ , meant to deceive you, Taylor, honestly, but I knew it was going to take something big to get you back here, and when you asked what my diagnosis was . . . I thought it might be the answer to my prayers, and I blurted out brain cancer before I even had time to think it through. Please don't be angry at me. Or Maggie or Kurt. They had no idea I wasn't telling the truth."

Angry didn't even begin to describe what she was feeling at the moment. Taylor rested her arms on the table and laid her head down. Kurt instantly placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, rubbing her back gently, and was surprised to feel her shaking with . . . laughter?

Taylor lifted her head when she wasn't able to hold her merriment in any longer, her relief so intense that tears streamed from her eyes as she laughed. "S-sorry," she gasped out when she could finally speak, as they all exchanged concerned looks. She jumped up and rushed over to her mom's chair, pulling her up and into her arms, hugging her tightly. "Thank God. Oh, thank God. You're not dying, after all. We're going to have years and years to make up for all the time we've lost."

Emma's eyes flooded with tears as she returned the embrace fiercely. "Yes, we are. I love you, sweetie. I'm sorry. I never should've . . ."

"Please. Don't apologize." Taylor gave her mom a watery smile as she drew back, glancing over her shoulder at her fiancé and his family. _Her_ family. "I didn't leave you much choice, and because of you, I have a family, and a future with Kurt. And I got closure for the past." Something she likely never would have sought out on her own and always regretted not having. She cocked her head as Kurt stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. "So. Tell me about this oncologist you're seeing. Is it serious?"

Emma's smile turned shy. "It is, yeah. His name is Jack Turner, and he's a widower just a few years older than me. His wife died of cancer a few years back, and he wasn't looking to date again, but we literally bumped into each other at the Autumn Festival in DuBois back in August and we just . . . clicked. He's really looking forward to meeting you."

"Well, I can't wait to meet him either," Taylor said. And to run the most comprehensive background check on him known to man. Not that she would mention _that_ to her smitten mother. She found herself really hoping that he was as good a man as he sounded, and things worked out between them. Her mom deserved happiness after dedicating so much of her life to the thankless task of raising a hardheaded daughter. "I should be back from New York in a few days. Why don't you invite him to come out to our place for dinner on Saturday if he's free?"

"I'll do that." Emma knew he'd make a point to be free. He'd been eager for her to tell Taylor about them so he could meet her almost since she had come to Clearfield.

"So, Taylor," Sarah teased, tongue-in-cheek, "a few days away from Kurt. How ever will the two of you survive it?" Everyone but Taylor knew that Kurt would be accompanying her, but he wanted it to be a surprise. Ben McKinnon had volunteered to cover for him, and he had jumped at the chance to have a mini-vacation with her. He'd already made reservations for dinner and a Broadway show.

Taylor grimaced. She hadn't even left yet, and she was already anxious to return. "I can't speak for Kurt, but I intend to get my business done as quickly as possible and get back here." Though she would have to stay at least one night. Tasha and Patterson would insist on a girls' night to grill her about Kurt. She was already dreading the inevitable squeals when they noticed her engagement ring.

"And speaking of that . . . I need to get a very early start in the morning, so I should probably get home and pack, go to bed early." She should have done that days ago, but she had been hoping that her testimony would prove to be unnecessary. The defendant in this case had to be dumber than a box of rocks not to have taken the plea deal the prosecutor had offered. Then again, intelligent people didn't generally attempt to rob a bank with no disguise and no exit strategy, and then take a roomful of hostages when things didn't go according to their haphazard plan.

They took their time saying their goodbyes and headed back to their cabin. Kurt kicked off his shoes and lounged on the bed as Taylor opened a suitcase and began placing items inside. She intended to pack light, since she hoped to return quickly, but Kurt kept insisting she add more items in case she had to stay longer than expected. "Do you want to do it for me?" she finally demanded in exasperation.

"No," Kurt said mildly. "I think that should do it." He watched her zip up the suitcase and place it by the door and patted the bed beside him. "Come here."

She slid into his arms unhesitatingly, laying her head on his chest so she could hear the beat of his heart. "This is nice," she murmured, already growing sleepy despite the early hour. "I'm going to miss this."

"Don't worry, Tee," Kurt returned, hiding his grin as he began carding his fingers through her hair, "we'll be back together so quickly it will feel like we were never apart." His own suitcase was already packed and hidden in his man cave downstairs. He couldn't wait to see her face in the morning when she realized he was going with her.

"Yeah," Taylor agreed halfheartedly, a little hurt at his cavalier dismissal of their impending separation. "I'm sure you're right. I should . . . I should probably get changed before I fall asleep in my clothes." She hoped against hope that he would take care of that task for her, or at least suggest that she didn't need pajamas, but he simply followed her lead in donning his night clothes and slipping under the covers with her.

He pulled her against him, spoon-fashion, and in minutes his breathing evened out, indicating he was asleep. So much for making the most of their last night together for a while.

It took her much longer to succumb to a fitful sleep, and all too soon Kurt was gently shaking her awake. "Taylor? Time to get ready to go."

"Mmm. Five more minutes," she pleaded.

Kurt laughed as he kissed the tip of her nose. "Sorry. No can do. You made me promise. But don't worry. You can sleep in the car."

 _How was she going to do that if she was driving?_ she wondered, but in her sleepy state, she assumed she had misunderstood him. She stumbled into the shower, thinking it was entirely unfair that he could look so put together at this ungodly hour of the morning.

She forgave him quickly when she finally made her way into the kitchen and found a steaming cup of coffee and one of his delicious omelets waiting for her. He'd taught her how to make them, but she was convinced he had a magic touch that always made them taste better. "God, I love you," she told him as she dug in.

Kurt grinned at her. "How much?"

Taylor paused with her fork midway to her mouth. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Kurt drawled, "it just so happens that Ben is willing to mind the shop for a couple of days if you wouldn't mind me tagging along with you to New York. I'll understand if you'd rather not—Oof!"

Taylor had leaped from her chair and launched herself into him with surprising force. "You mean it? You're really coming with me?" she demanded, eyes shining, her whole face glowing.

Kurt nodded to the two suitcases by the door. "If you're sure you can put up with me. I'd like to take you by the office to meet some of your new colleagues after you testify, if you're up for that."

Taylor looped her arms around his neck. "Oh, I think I can handle that. As long as you don't mind dropping by the NYO and meeting _my_ friends."

"You've got yourself a deal, Miss Shaw," Kurt told her, and the two of them met each other halfway in a kiss to seal the bargain.

Taylor was on cloud nine the entire ride to New York.


	21. Chapter Twenty

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

As it turned out, her testimony wasn't needed after all. The defendant's attorney finally managed to convince his client that a jury would be much more sympathetic to the stories of terror his hostages had to tell than they would be to his own tale of woe, and he accepted the plea deal the prosecutor had offered. Taylor got the call just as they were exiting the Holland Tunnel, and she relayed the news to Kurt. "Sorry about that. Guess we made this trip for nothing."

"Not for nothing, Tee," Kurt corrected. "I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to meeting your friends and introducing my fiancée to mine. You're especially going to love my administrative assistant. She's quite a character." Liz was part mother hen, part drill sergeant, and her sarcastic wit never failed to bring a smile to his face.

"I'm sure I will," Taylor agreed. Any friend of Kurt's would be a friend of hers. "Just out of curiosity, though: now that we're partners, are we going to be sharing custody of your administrative assistant, or do I need to start looking for my own?"

To be honest, he hadn't given that a thought. Kurt's brow furrowed as he considered the question. Liz's desk was the gateway to the executive offices, the second of which would now be Taylor's, so there would have to be some major rearrangement done to accommodate another assistant. Liz was always complaining that he didn't give her enough to do, and she would undoubtedly resent having to share her space with a stranger, but he knew better than to volunteer her services without checking with her first. He might be the boss, but she ruled the roost. "I'll have to get back to you on that."

Taylor bit back a grin. Was Kurt . . . henpecked? By his secretary? She couldn't wait to observe that dynamic. "Do you want to go there first so we can ask her?"

"Actually . . ." Kurt glanced over at her sheepishly as his stomach rumbled. "How about we grab some breakfast first, then pick up a few groceries and head to the apartment to unpack?" He'd known when he left that he was going to be away quite some time, so the cupboards and refrigerator were bare, and he didn't want to live solely on take-out the next few days.

Taylor suddenly realized she was more than a little hungry herself and assented. The omelet that Kurt had made them before they left had been more of an early-morning snack than breakfast. He took her to a family-owned restaurant next to his local grocery store that served the best waffles she had ever tasted.

"Promise me something," she requested as they left the restaurant and headed next door to do their grocery shopping. "No matter how much I beg, don't let me come here more than twice a month." If the rest of the eating establishments he frequented were anything like this one, she was going to be seeing a lot more of the gym in the future.

Kurt grinned at her as he grabbed a shopping cart. "I limit myself to once a week, personally. Does that mean I'm going to have to come without you half the time?"

Taylor groaned. There was no way she could let him walk out the door knowing where he was going and resist going with him. "Split the difference and come three times a month?" she asked hopefully.

Kurt tugged her close and kissed the top of her head. "Deal."

The few staples he had intended to purchase quickly turned into a heaping cart full, since this store had higher-quality ingredients than what he could purchase in Clearfield, and he wanted to prepare some extra-special meals for their family and friends when he returned. Taylor tossed in plenty of her favorite snacks as well, and by the time they checked out and made it to the apartment, it was after ten.

Taylor's breath caught in her throat as she followed Kurt inside. She didn't know what she had been expecting, but this . . . "Wow. The PI business pays pretty well, huh?"

The apartment was spacious and airy, located on the top floor of a brick building in a much more upscale neighborhood than hers, and the living room contained a large picture window that virtually guaranteed breathtaking views of the city at night. It was tastefully decorated, but the furniture was as functional as it was good-looking.

Kurt grinned at her as she set her grocery bags on the counter and flopped down on the couch beneath the window. "I do like my creature comforts. I take it you approve so far?"

"Well, it's hard not to," Taylor told him. "Your living room is bigger than my whole apartment." She was definitely _not_ showing him her place now. "And this couch is so comfortable I could sleep here."

"No need," Kurt assured her. "The bed's more than large enough for both of us, and I'm happy to share." He set his own bags down and held out a hand. "Come on. Let me show you the rest of the place."

Taylor let him pull her up and followed him down the hallway to the living quarters. The apartment had three bedrooms, one of which he'd converted into an office, and he stopped there first. "So I was thinking . . . If I moved my desk over against this wall . . ." he demonstrated the angle he was thinking of, ". . . and moved the file cabinet over there . . ." he pointed to the opposite wall, ". . . we could fit another desk about the size of mine in here, so we can both work from home when we need to. We could go by a furniture store on the way to the office and pick one out. What do you think?"

"I think . . ." Taylor looped her arms around his neck and leaned up to kiss him, ". . . that I absolutely hit the jackpot the day I snared you, Kurt Weller. How did I ever get so lucky?"

"Good timing?" Kurt teased and laughed when she playfully slugged him. "So that's a yes to the desk?" She nodded and he grabbed her hand. "Come on. Let me show you our room."

Taylor laughed at his eagerness as he led her into the master bedroom, and just as she had back at the cabin, she felt instantly at home. The décor was soothing and the carpet beneath her feet so plush that she wanted to yank her shoes off then and there and dig her toes into it. The bed was king-size, with dark cherry nightstands on either side, and looked inviting enough to dive into right now. She'd been too excited to sleep on the drive here, but she wished she had made more of an effort now.

Her eyes widened as she took in the walk-in closet, with its assortment of shelves and drawers and shoe racks and large spaces to hang clothes, but her mouth literally fell open as he tugged her into the bathroom. "Wow. You really weren't kidding when you said you liked your creature comforts."

There was a large shower with a glass door immediately to her left, a long bathtub more than wide enough for two just beyond that. A TV was built into the wall above it, as well as a shelf for towels, and a counter with two large mirrors above it ran the entire length of the right wall. The mirrors were divided by a cabinet, and on the far side of it were two sinks with a shelf underneath them for towels and a large cabinet against the far wall cattycorner to the toilet for more storage space. "I'm beginning to think my timing wasn't so good after all. I should have looked you up years ago."

Kurt chuckled. "No, actually, your timing is just about perfect. I only moved into this place a couple months before I left for Clearfield. My old apartment was nice, but it couldn't hold a candle to this one. You're actually the first person besides Sarah and Sawyer and Liz to see it."

She was unaccountably glad that he hadn't had any other girlfriends here, that it would always be just _their_ space. Taylor smiled as she walked back over to Kurt and wrapped her arms around his waist, keeping her eyes locked on his. "You know I'm just kidding, right? I'd move into a cardboard box under a bridge if I had to, to be with you."

"A cardboard box under a bridge, really? You wouldn't invite me to move into your apartment with you?" Kurt asked as he steered her back out into the hallway and back toward the kitchen to begin putting the groceries away.

"Of course I would. It might be a little cramped, though. No creature comforts, unless you count electricity and running water." Taylor shrugged at the look he gave her. "It's never been home, just . . . just a place to crash when I needed a few hours to sleep."

"Well, you've got a home now." Kurt dropped a quick kiss on her lips and began unloading the groceries.

"The best one I could ask for," Taylor agreed as she helped him put their purchases away.

They returned to the car and retrieved their luggage, Kurt clearing one whole side of the massive closet for Taylor despite her protests that she didn't need nearly that much space, and when they had finished unpacking, they headed for his office. Taylor had texted Patterson while they were working and learned that her team had returned late last night from rescuing some women being held hostage in rural Kentucky, so they weren't expected in until later in the day.

Kurt's office was located on the eighty-fifth floor of a downtown high-rise, but it was quiet at this time of day, most of the investigators out in the field chasing down leads on their various cases, the spacious waiting room empty. His administrative assistant was so engrossed in her own work that she didn't even hear them approach. "Hey, Liz."

"Kurt!" Liz leaped to her feet and came around her desk to hug him tightly. "I was so sorry to hear about your dad. I know how hard it is to lose a parent. If you need anything—"

"I'll let you know," Kurt assured her, eager for the day when enough time had passed that he wouldn't have to endure condolences from everyone he knew. He was already tired of pretending that he wasn't glad the bastard was burning in hell. He stepped back to Taylor's side as Liz's gaze shifted from him to her and wrapped an arm around her waist.

Liz's eyes narrowed as she studied the strange woman. She looked like an older version of the girl in the picture Kurt had kept on his desk as long as she had known him, the childhood friend he scarcely talked about. The one she was convinced had been the catalyst for him getting into this line of work. "Are you—"

Taylor smiled as she held out a hand. "I'm Taylor Shaw. Kurt has told me so much about you. It's nice to finally meet you."

Liz slowly extended her own hand. "Nice to meet you, as well. I'm Elizabeth Adams, but everyone calls me Liz. I'd like to be able to say I'd heard a lot about you as well, but Kurt rarely talks about you. I recognize you from the picture on his desk, though." She cast a pointed look in his direction.

Kurt cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Yeah, Taylor and I, uh . . . we lost touch a few years back, but we were reunited just before Christmas and . . . well, we both realized we'd always felt the same way about one another, and we're engaged. We're getting married the first Saturday in March."

"Oh. Wow." Liz's smile faltered a bit as she glanced from one to the other, took in the ring on Taylor's hand. "That's . . . sudden. Do you have a bun in the oven, or are you one of those good Catholic girls who doesn't believe in sex before marriage? I assume you _are_ Catholic, correct?"

"Liz!" Kurt spluttered, glaring at his annoyingly outspoken assistant. He'd always appreciated her directness, but this was beyond the pale.

Taylor laughed as she placed a hand on his arm. "It's okay, Kurt. I don't mind. Neither to the first two, and yes to the last," she answered Liz. "Though not a very good one." Truth be told, until she started going with Kurt a couple weeks ago, she hadn't set foot in a church in years.

"You'll be happy to know I finally took your advice and hired someone to lighten my workload," Kurt told her, wanting to get the conversation back on track. "I'm making Taylor my partner in the business."

"Really?" Liz looked Taylor up and down, making no secret of her skepticism. She could understand Kurt's attraction to her, but she looked too scrawny to be of much use in a fight. Certainly not the backup she'd had in mind for him. She knew love made fools out of men, but Kurt was taking that to a dangerous new level, in her opinion. Not only could this woman cost him the business he had worked so hard to build, she could get him killed. "Do you have any investigative experience?"

"I'm an FBI agent," Taylor told her quietly, and had the satisfaction of seeing Liz momentarily at a loss for words. It was time the other woman realized she was more than just a pretty face.

"Taylor worked in the Special Warfare Command in the Navy; she actually trained with the SEALs on occasion," Kurt informed Liz proudly. "She's also multilingual and has a degree in computer science from the Naval Academy. I think she's going to be a great fit here."

It certainly sounded as if she would be. Professionally at least. Liz would withhold judgment on the personal front for now, knowing she would never think anyone was quite good enough for Kurt. She'd worked for him since he started this business—in fact, in the early days, it had been just the two of them—and somewhere along the line he'd become like another son to her. "I'm sure you're right."

"I know I am," Kurt predicted confidently. "I dropped by today to show her around the place, introduce her to anyone who's here. She'll be taking the office next to mine. I thought I'd start the tour there."

"No!" Liz blurted out as Kurt started to usher Taylor in that direction and wished she could sink through the floor when both of them swiveled to face her, eyebrows raised. "I mean . . . It would make more sense to start at the other end of the office and work your way back here."

"Liz? What's going on?" Kurt asked as his assistant's gaze turned sheepish under his continued scrutiny.

"Well, it's just . . ." Liz paused to collect herself. "I've been using that office as a makeshift file room," she finally admitted.

"A file room? _Why?_ We have one just down the hall." A perfectly large one that Liz had personally designed to meet her exacting standards.

Liz flushed. "I know. But the office was closer, and nobody was using it. I'm sorry, Kurt. I'll start cleaning it out right away."

"It's not a problem," Taylor spoke up before Kurt could respond. She smiled up at him. "I'm sure you've got some work you'd like to catch up on, so why don't you do as Liz said and show me around the rest of the place, and then I'll help Liz move the files while you do that. It will give the two of us a chance to get to know one another better." She knew how important Liz was to Kurt, and she wanted to win the woman over as quickly as possible. If that meant enduring some pointed and potentially embarrassing questions, then so be it.

"Okay," Kurt acquiesced, guiding her back the way they had come. He led her down the hallway, pausing at the various offices so she could peer inside, and motioned for her to precede him into the first (and largest) of their conference rooms. "This is what we call our 'war room'. We meet here once or twice a week so my investigators can update me on their progress on various cases and toss around ideas when we get stuck on an investigation. We also do orientation with our new interns in here."

"It's amazing," Taylor said sincerely. "This whole office is amazing. I don't know exactly what I was expecting when you said you ran a PI business—"

"A dimly lit office with cigar-smoking men in trench coats and fedoras?" Kurt suggested with a laugh.

Taylor shoved him playfully. "Nothing that dramatic. I guess I just didn't expect the office to be this . . . this _big_." It occupied nearly a quarter of this floor of the high-rise and had been carefully decorated to appeal to both high-end clients and ordinary people. "You've definitely downplayed your success. It's incredible, and I'm so proud of you."

"Thanks, Tee," Kurt said huskily, squeezing her hand gently, pleased beyond measure by her words. He led her back out of the conference room and down the hall to the cubicles where the interns worked. They all perked up when they saw him, calling out greetings. "Hey, guys," he greeted in return. "I'd like to introduce you all to someone very special to me: my fiancée and new business partner, Taylor Shaw."

"Hi, everyone," Taylor greeted shyly as they all crowded around her, congratulating her and Kurt and introducing themselves. There was no way she would remember all their names, but she did her best to retain as many as she could. "It's nice to meet you all."

They chatted for a while before Kurt ordered the interns back to work and they continued on their tour of the office, viewing the smaller conference rooms and the rest of the offices. The one closest to the waiting room was occupied, and Kurt rapped lightly on the door frame to catch the man's attention. "Hey, Marc."

"Kurt!" The man leaped to his feet and came around his desk to shake Kurt's hand. "It's good to see you again. When did you get back to New York? Are you back for good?"

"Unfortunately not yet," Kurt replied, "but soon. I just came by today to show my fiancée around. Taylor, this is Marc Anderson. Marc, Taylor Shaw."

A grin split Marc's face as he shook Taylor's hand. "It's very nice to meet you, Miss Taylor Shaw. I have to ask though, what's a pretty gal like you doing with an old dog like this? You could do much better."

"Like you, for instance?" Taylor teased back without missing a beat, ignoring Kurt's splutter of mock outrage.

Marc's grin widened. "Exactly. I knew you'd understand. Dump this guy, and go out with me instead. I think we're fated to be together."

Fated to be together? Really? Could he get any cheesier? "Tell me, has that line ever worked on an actual living, breathing woman?"

Marc clutched his hands to his chest theatrically. "Who ever loved that loved not at first sight? But, alas! The course of true love never did run smooth."

"Neither will the course of your employment," Kurt said dryly before Taylor could respond. "If you continue to proposition my fiancée. Oh, and by the way, I've made her my partner in the business, so she's your new boss as well."

Marc gulped. "You might have mentioned that to begin with," he said reproachfully to Kurt before turning back to Taylor. "I apologize, ma'am. I hope you understand I was just having fun with you."

"Of course," she assured him. "No harm done. Anyone who can quote Shakespeare like that is bound to be a friend of mine. And it's Taylor, please. I'm not one to stand on ceremony."

"Marc's an amateur actor in his spare time," Kurt told her. "He's had a leading role in several of Shakespeare's most famous plays." He glanced back at Marc. "And he's our office class clown."

"Well, every office needs one of those," Taylor laughed. "It was very nice to meet you, Marc," she added as Kurt tugged on her hand. "I look forward to seeing you again very soon."

"Bye, Taylor, Kurt," Marc called as they exited his office.

They circled back around through the waiting room to Kurt's office. Taylor's mouth dropped open as she stepped into the room, and she turned slowly in a circle, taking it all in. The L-shaped desk and large bookshelf were a rich cherry, obviously top-of-the-line, and the décor was cheery, clearly intended to put anxious parents at ease as much as possible, but it was the view that really caught her attention. The far wall was made entirely of glass and looked out not only over the city, but New York Harbor and the Statue of Liberty as well. "Is my office like this?" she demanded.

Kurt grinned at her. "Well, it doesn't have much in the way of furniture at the moment, but we can remedy that. But if you're asking if the view is the same . . . yes it is." He laughed as she flung herself into his arms and swung her around, kissing her lightly before setting her down. "I'm glad it meets with your approval."

"How could it not?" Taylor asked as she tugged him over to the window to take utmost advantage of the view. "This place, your apartment, they're incredible. I love them."

"It's our apartment," Kurt corrected. "And I love _you_."

Taylor was just opening her mouth to say the words back to him when she caught sight of Liz in the doorway, her mouth pinched in a look of clear disapproval. _Great_ , Taylor thought despairingly, _now she thinks I'm with Kurt for what he can give me._ If she hadn't already.

Liz's expression smoothed out as Kurt turned to look at her. "I put some files I thought you might be interested in looking over on your desk," she told him, motioning to the folders she had stacked neatly on the right side.

"And . . . the boss cracks the whip," Kurt said ruefully to Taylor. "I wasn't planning to do much work today, so I shouldn't be long. I'll review these and catch up with you in a few minutes, and then we can go meet your friends, okay?"

"Take your time," Taylor assured him with a smile she was very far from feeling as she followed Liz through the door adjoining their offices and into her new workspace.

As Kurt had said, it was sparsely furnished, containing a hodgepodge of mismatched furniture that had clearly seen better days. Every square inch of those surfaces was covered with files. Taylor studied the space in silence.

"Not quite what you were expecting?" Liz asked in a gloating tone.

Actually, Taylor had been taking a moment to envision how she would like to decorate the room. She'd never had the opportunity to furnish her own workspace before. "It's going to be perfect." She was more eager than ever to start working here. "You can ask me," she added as she began gathering up files.

"Ask you what?" Liz wanted to know.

"Whatever it will take for you to realize I'm not a gold-digging tramp who's going to take Kurt for everything he's worked so hard to build and then leave him high and dry."

Liz's eyebrows rose at Taylor's directness. She appreciated her no-bullshit approach, but there was a flaw to her logic. "But I only just met you. How will I know you're telling me the truth?"

Taylor shrugged. "I suppose you can't, not for sure, but you strike me as a pretty good judge of character. I don't imagine too many people manage to pull one over on you."

Liz laughed in spite of herself. Damned if she wasn't beginning to like this woman, after all. "You're not too bad a judge of character yourself." She studied Taylor in silence for a long moment. "I always figured you were the reason Kurt got into this line of work. From the look on his face the few times I asked about you, I assumed that you had been kidnapped or run away, and were never found."

"You weren't too far off the mark on that," Taylor admitted. "I didn't run away, exactly, since my mother always knew where to find me, but I did cut ties with Kurt and his family."

"But Kurt said you'd always felt the same way about one another," Liz commented. "Why would you do that if you loved him so much?"

"You don't have to answer that," Kurt said harshly just as Taylor was opening her mouth to speak, and both she and Liz looked up, startled. They hadn't even heard him come in.

"It's okay, Kurt," Taylor assured him. "I told Liz she could ask me whatever she wants. I know she cares a great deal for you, and I want her to be comfortable with me."

"It's not okay," Kurt contradicted. "You don't have to justify yourself to anyone, Taylor. People who truly care about me—" he shot Liz a stern look, "—will be happy for us."

"Is that what you think?" Liz asked, wounded. "That because I have some reservations about this that I don't care about you?"

"Of course he doesn't," Taylor intervened before things could get out of hand. "Kurt's told me several times that you've always treated him like a son. And Kurt, surely you can see that Liz's fears aren't unfounded. You show up out of the blue with an unfamiliar woman and announce that you're going to marry her and turn over half your business to her. It's natural for her to be concerned."

Fair point. Kurt took a deep breath, knowing he was being overprotective of Taylor. He probably always would be, after what she had endured. After what his father had put her—put _them_ —through. "Taylor's not a gold-digger," he told Liz. "She had good reason to act as she did."

"And I'll tell you all about it sometime," Taylor promised her. "Sometime soon. But it's too long a story to get into today." And she didn't want the tale to dampen her mood. It wasn't every day that you got to introduce your friends to your fiancé, after all.

"There's no need," Liz backpedaled, relieved that Taylor had managed to smooth things over between her and Kurt. Had Taylor truly been the opportunist she had all but accused her of being, she would have welcomed the opportunity to oust her from his life. "Your announcement just caught me by surprise, that's all; I know Kurt's too smart to get involved with someone who's only with him for the money."

Taylor simply nodded. She appreciated that, but one day she would tell Liz the truth. She didn't want there to be any shred of doubt left in the woman's mind that she would make Kurt a good wife.

"So . . ." Liz asked, searching for a new topic of conversation to fill the awkward silence as all three of them gathered up an armload of files and started down the hall to the file room, "how are the wedding plans coming?"

"Umm . . ." Taylor glanced up at Kurt, not sure what to say. "We haven't really gotten started on that yet, with everything that's been going on, but how much can there be to plan? Book the church, pick out a dress and a wedding cake, get a marriage license and show up at the right time."

Liz blinked. "Oh, honey. You really don't have a clue, do you? A lot of couples start planning a year in advance, so you're really behind the curve. I'd better print you off a to-do list. Are you having the wedding here or in Clearfield?" She frowned as the two of them exchanged sheepish looks. "You mean to tell me you haven't even booked a church? At this late date?"

"No," Taylor said quietly. "Kurt proposed only a couple days before his father went into the hospital, and since then, everything's kind of been on hold. I suppose at this point the only church available may be in Clearfield, but that will make it more difficult for my friends to attend." The whole team could hardly afford to be hours away if a critical incident occurred.

"And mine as well," Kurt agreed. "I want to get married here in New York, Tee. So I guess we'd better start calling churches first thing tomorrow."

"That may not be necessary," Liz told them. "I'm Catholic as well, and I'm pretty sure my church is available that weekend. I can check with Father Brennan if you'd like. Of course, I live out on Staten Island, so you may not want to—"

Kurt exchanged another quick glance with Taylor as they set the files they were carrying down. "That sounds perfect, Liz. Please, do that, and let me know what he says. We need to get going now, but we'll be around for a couple more days if he wants to meet with us. Whenever works for him is fine; our schedule is pretty flexible."

"I'll get right on that," Liz assured him, already on her way to do just that. "Before you go, let me print you guys off that list. I'm sure there are several other things you'll need to handle while you're in town. And I'll contact my daughters-in-law and get the names of the bakeries and florists and other vendors they used. I know they were very happy with them." She sat down at her desk and quickly printed off the document her daughters-in-law had sworn was a wedding-planning bible. "Here you go."

"Thanks, Liz," Taylor said, impulsively giving the older woman a hug as she accepted the paper. "You're a godsend."

"Oh, go on with you now," Liz told her, but Taylor could see that she was pleased. "Have fun with your friends. But not too much. Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

From the tales she had told him over the years, Kurt didn't think there was much Liz _hadn't_ tried. He was just opening his mouth to point that out when she speared him with her frostiest glare. "Before you say what's on your mind, remember, I know where all the skeletons are in _your_ closet as well, Kurt Weller."

Kurt shut his mouth with a snap.

Taylor laughed all the way to the elevator.

She and Liz were going to get along just fine.


	22. Chapter Twenty-One

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor took a deep breath as the elevator rose to her office floor and the doors slid open. _Showtime._ She resisted the urge to reach for Kurt's hand as they stepped into the bullpen—she'd already decided how she wanted to play this, and Kurt was more than happy to play along—and grinned as she spotted Zapata at her desk with her back to her.

"Hey, Tasha," she said when they were just a few feet away. "How's it going?"

"Taylor!" Tasha leaped to her feet to hug her friend, but froze when she saw who was standing next to her. "What is this, bring-your-hot-boyfriend-to-work day?" she joked. "Because I must have missed that memo."

Tasha didn't have a hot boyfriend. Or any boyfriend, currently. Speaking of which . . . "Oh, Kurt's not my boyfriend," Taylor said as casually as she could manage. "By the way, Kurt, this is Tasha Zapata. Tasha, Kurt Weller."

Tasha frowned at Taylor as she obediently shook Kurt's outstretched hand. "Seriously? You dumped him already? What the hell is wrong with you? You don't find a guy that looks like this and can cook every day of the week. And you," she said, rounding on Kurt. "Let me guess: she gave you the 'It's-not-you-it's me and we're-better-off-as-just-friends speech, and you fell for it. I'm disappointed. I thought you'd be smarter than that."

Kurt blinked, not sure what to say to that. Taylor grinned as she came to his rescue. "Actually . . . I happen to think he's just about the smartest guy I know. But then I might be biased, since he is my fiancé." She held up her left hand as she spoke, wriggling her fingers slightly so the stones in her ring would catch the light.

"Oh my god." Tasha stared at the two of them for a long moment before hugging them both, slugging Taylor playfully in the shoulder as she drew back. "You really had me going there for a minute. Congratulations, you two. When's the big day?"

"The first Saturday in March," Taylor told her. "And I want you and Patterson to be bridesmaids."

"I'm in," Tasha said instantly. "Just please don't pick out a god-awful dress for me to wear. Does Patterson know yet? She doesn't, does she? Let's go tell her." She started off in the direction of Patterson's lab, and Taylor cast Kurt an amused look as they obediently fell into step behind her. "Hey, Patterson. Look who's back."

"Taylor!" Patterson scurried over to her and hugged her tightly. "Oh, it's so good to see you again. I've missed you. And you must be Kurt," she said as she turned to him, hugging him as well. "It's nice to finally meet you."

"Taylor has something to tell you. And to ask you," Zapata told her, raising her eyebrows at the pointed look Taylor shot her. "What? It's not like I told her what it was."

Patterson turned to her expectantly. Taylor glanced up at Kurt as she cleared her throat, and he reached for her hand as she looked back at her friend. "So, uh . . . Kurt asked me to marry him, and I said yes. I'd like you to be one of my bridesmaids."

Tasha raised her hands to her ears as Patterson let out an ear-splitting squeal that made both Taylor and Kurt wince. She threw her arms around both of them once again. "Congratulations. I'm so happy for the two of you. And of course, I'll be a bridesmaid. Have you set a date yet? Are you having the wedding here, or . . ."

"We're going tomorrow morning to Staten Island to see about booking a church there," Taylor told her. Liz hadn't wasted any time in getting that meeting set up. "We're hoping to have the wedding the first Saturday in March, but apparently you need to start planning these things a bit farther in advance."

"Really," Tasha said, tongue-in-cheek. "I would never have guessed that."

Patterson shot her a look of amused exasperation. "Not helpful, Tash. We're here for you if you need anything," she told Taylor. "I know it's going to be tough to juggle your workload with planning a wedding."

"I appreciate that, guys," Taylor told them. "I'll have to work out a time with you to go dress shopping. Don't worry," she added as Tasha opened her mouth to reiterate her plea for a nice dress. "I won't pick anything too frilly or ugly." Really, it was a little bit insulting that Tasha didn't have any more faith in her taste than that. Then again, she'd rarely seen her in a dress, so perhaps her concern wasn't so unjustified, after all. "As for the rest, I'm hoping that our mothers and Kurt's administrative assistant will help with a lot of the planning."

"You have an administrative assistant?" Patterson asked. "What is it you do, exactly? You do work here in New York, correct? You're not taking Taylor away from us, I hope."

Kurt glanced at Taylor. "I'm a private investigator here in New York," he confirmed, leaving it to her to break the news of her impending departure. At least she would still be in New York and would be able to see them often. "I own T&K Investigations."

"I've heard of you," Patterson exclaimed excitedly. "I thought you looked familiar when Tasha showed me the picture Taylor sent her of you. You recovered that teenage girl back in the fall that police considered a runaway, but who had really been kidnapped by a pedophile."

"Erica Jennings," Kurt recalled, his smile half-relieved, half-regretful. Erica was one of the lucky ones in the sense that she had been returned to her parents alive, but life as she knew it would never be the same. The outcome could have been so much better if only the police had listened to her parents, but with Erica's history of running away, he could understand why they had classified it as a low priority.

But understanding that didn't make it any easier to take.

Tasha's eyes narrowed as she studied them. "I saw that look the two of you just gave one another. You're leaving us, aren't you?" she demanded of Taylor. "You're leaving the FBI and going to work with Kurt."

Taylor resisted the urge to glance at Kurt again. This was her news to share. "I am," she confirmed quietly.

"No!" Patterson wailed. "Taylor, why? You're like a sister to me. It's going to be like losing a member of my family."

"I'm sorry," Taylor told her as she hugged her yet again. "Not seeing the two of you every day made it such a hard call, but I just don't see how I can do this job and make a relationship work." She didn't want to leave Kurt wondering when she walked out the door every morning if she would be coming home that evening. She didn't want to wonder that herself any longer. "But I promise you're not going to be losing me. You're both like sisters to me as well, and our office is less than twenty minutes away. I can still meet up with you guys for lunch, and we can go out after work sometimes too."

"The after-work thing will be all well and good for you two," Tasha commented unhappily. "You're both part of a couple. But if I tag along, I'll just end up feeling like a fifth wheel."

Patterson and Taylor exchanged glances. "Well, then, we'll just have to find you a guy of your own," Patterson said, ever the optimist. "I'm sure if we put our heads together, we can come up with some nice guys for you to go out with."

"Great," Tasha remarked unhappily. "I don't know which is worse: that my blissfully happy friends are plotting to set me up, or that I'm desperate enough that I'm actually considering it. But I swear to god, if you set me up with a loser that still lives with his mommy, I'll—"

"I promise we'll vet the guys very carefully," Patterson assured her. "Right, Taylor?"

Taylor shrugged. "Sorry. I'm willing to help you vet them, but don't expect me to be much help providing them. The only single guys I know are the investigator I met at Kurt's office today, and Oscar." There were also a couple guys at her gym that she suspected might be single based on the looks they had given her, but she didn't even know their names.

Tasha wrinkled her nose. "Oscar? That guy you dated a handful of times who's still totally obsessed with you and thinks the two of you are fated to be together? Yeah, no thanks. Pass."

"Taylor?" Kurt asked evenly, eyes honing in on hers with laser-like focus. "What is she talking about?"

She grimaced. Open mouth, insert foot. Or in this case, both feet would probably be more appropriate. "It's nothing, Kurt. Just a guy I dated while I was in the Navy who can't quite get over the fact that I broke up with him. He shows up periodically to try to convince me to change my mind. He's harmless, though."

Judging by Patterson's and Tasha's incredulous expressions, they didn't at all agree with that assessment. "Why am I just hearing about this now? Please tell me you've at least taken out a restraining order against him."

"It's not that big a deal, Kurt," Taylor started to say. "Oscar's—"

"Harmless?" Kurt reiterated, hating himself for what he was about to say, but needing her to understand how important this issue was. "I don't just look for missing kids, Tee; I look for missing _persons._ Do you know how many women I've been hired to find who told their families the exact same thing? They all dismissed their loved ones' concerns because the guy seemed too nice to ever pose an actual threat to them. And do you know how many of them I found alive once these creeps took them. None. Not. One."

"So what do you want me to do, Kurt?" Taylor asked quietly. "I'll take out a restraining order if you want me to, but we both know it's not worth the paper it's printed on. The cops can't do anything unless and until he tries something, and if he does that, trust me, I am more than capable of defending myself."

"In a fair fight, sure," Kurt agreed. "I'm not doubting your abilities, Taylor. But guys like this don't face you fair and square; they sneak up behind you at night, and knock you over the head or hit you with a Taser. They're _cowards_. So, to answer your question, yes, I want you to get a restraining order. I know it won't protect you from an attack like that, but if, god forbid, this Oscar were to do something to you, at least it would give the police probable cause to take a hard look at him."

"Okay." Taylor looped her arms around Kurt's neck and gazed up at him soberly, wanting to reassure him that she was taking this seriously. "I'll take care of it before we return to Clearfield."

"Seriously?" Zapata demanded. "We've been begging you to do that practically from the moment we met you, and all this guy has to do is say _please_ and you cave?" She turned to Kurt. "I should have tracked you down years ago."

"That would have been hard to do," Taylor said dryly, turning in Kurt's arms to face her friends once more. "Since you didn't know he existed."

"And it was incredibly unfair of you not to tell us that," Zapata fired back without missing a beat. "Here Patterson and I were, thinking you were anti-romance, and all the time you had this incredible guy just waiting for you to find him again. I mean, you've only been back together a little over a month and already you're engaged. How long did it take him to pop the question?"

Taylor and Kurt exchanged glances. "I asked Taylor to marry me a week after she came back to town," Kurt told her.

Zapata was stunned speechless.

"How long are you going to be in town?" Patterson wanted to know. "It would be nice if the two of you would join Robert and me for dinner before you leave. Does he know you're engaged to Kurt and that you're leaving the FBI?"

"Patterson's boyfriend, Robert Borden, is my shrink," Taylor explained to Kurt. "And we'd love to have dinner with you. We'll be in town through tomorrow, so whichever night works best for you will be fi—"

"Tonight's out," Zapata interrupted. "You can bring your boyfriend along if you want to, Patterson, but we're all going out for drinks to celebrate Taylor and Kurt's engagement. I won't take no for an answer."

Taylor and Kurt exchanged amused glances as Patterson shrugged good-naturedly. "Tomorrow night should be fine with me and Robert if it's okay with you two."

"That will be fine," Taylor said as Kurt nodded at her. "And to answer your question, no, I haven't talked to Borden about any of this. I wanted to break the news to the two of you first. And Reade. Where is he, by the way?"

Tasha and Patterson hesitated as they looked at one another. "In a meeting with Mayfair," Tasha said finally. "Trying to get you cleared to come back to work."

 _Oh._ Taylor swallowed hard, wishing she had arrived sooner. She could have spared him that unnecessary—and no doubt unpleasant—chore. "I should go talk to him."

"We'll all go," Patterson offered sympathetically, and Taylor smiled as she and Zapata fell into step beside her and Kurt. She was so blessed to have such wonderful friends.

Reade was just walking out of Mayfair's office when they approached. "Taylor!" He enveloped her in a hug. "It's good to see you again. I hope you've missed us as much as we missed you because we need you around here. I just got Mayfair to agree to reinstate you as long as Borden agrees to it."

"Oh, I guarantee you she's hardly given us a second thought," Zapata said gleefully. "Remember how we told you she'd started dating her childhood friend a few weeks ago? Well, he's her fiancé now. Reade, this is Kurt Weller. Kurt, this is Edgar Reade, but for obvious reasons he prefers to go by his last name."

"It's nice to meet you, Kurt," Reade said as the two of them shook hands. "And congratulations, Taylor. To the both of you."

"Thanks, Reade," Taylor said. She hesitated, but she could see he knew what was coming next before she even spoke the words. "I'm not coming back to work here, though. I was just on my way in to let Mayfair know."

"I can't say I blame you, but I hate to see you go," Reade told her. "I know this job doesn't exactly allow for a happy home life, but you're going to be tough to replace." He hugged her again. "You'll be missed." He paused. "I do get an invite to the wedding, right?"

"As soon as we get them printed, you'll be one of the first to get one," Taylor promised. That was something else they should probably take care of before they left New York. "We're getting married the first Saturday in March. And we're going out for drinks tonight to celebrate if you want to come."

"I'm in," Reade said instantly. "I could use a drink after the day I've had." Or two or three. He grimaced as he glanced back at Mayfair's office.

Taylor had no trouble interpreting that look. "I take it she's still . . . upset with me?" No doubt that was the understatement of the century.

"Let's just say you probably won't be on her Christmas card list this year," Reade told her. "Then again, you're quitting, so maybe I'm wrong. She may decide to throw you a parade."

"Tee?" Kurt asked, his eyes narrowing slightly as her expression turned sheepish. "What did you do?"

"You remember that last hostage situation I told you about?" Taylor asked, and Kurt nodded. "I publically questioned the scene commander's decision to send in the SWAT Team, and it brought the FBI some very negative press." Also a few potential lawsuits from the family members of the victims. She was lucky she hadn't been fired on the spot. "My emotions were running high after watching those people get shot right in front of me, but I should have handled it better."

She glanced toward Mayfair's office. "I suppose I should get this over with. It shouldn't take long and then we can head back to our apartment until it's time to head out for those drinks." She could use a nap after getting so little sleep last night. She gave Kurt's hand a quick squeeze before releasing it and heading into Mayfair's office.

"So," Zapata said with a gleam in her eye as soon as her friend was out of earshot, "I noticed Taylor said 'our' apartment. So she's moved in with you? Because I know you wouldn't fit in her cracker-box place."

"Tasha!" Patterson scolded, but Kurt simply laughed.

"It's okay, Patterson," he told her. "It's no secret that Taylor and I are living together."

"Sorry," Zapata said. "It's just . . . Taylor has never dated once in all the time we've known her. I'd almost begun to think she was opposed to romance, and then in less than a month, she goes from dating a childhood friend we've never heard of to getting engaged and moving in with him."

Kurt nodded. "I know it all must seem very sudden, but it really isn't. You should probably talk to Taylor about that, though." He wasn't opposed to talking about their history, but he thought it would be best if Taylor shared those details with her friends herself.

Zapata held his gaze for a long moment. "Fair enough. Just promise me you won't break her heart. Taylor might seem like a tough cookie, but she's got a soft underbelly. She doesn't let that many people close to her, and once she does . . . Just promise me you won't break her heart," she repeated.

"I won't," Kurt assured her. "I've known Taylor my entire life, and I've wanted to marry her since I was seventeen. I spent a lot of years thinking I'd never see her again, and now that we've found one another once more . . . I know how lucky I am, and I'll never do anything to screw up this second chance."

"Good," Zapata said briskly. "Because your lives are about to get very tangled up, what with getting married and Taylor coming to work for you. And just so you know, if you do hurt her, I guarantee Patterson and I can come up with a foolproof way of murdering you and disposing of your body so that nobody is ever the wiser."

"Zapata!" Reade scolded this time, but once again, Kurt just laughed.

"Don't worry about it," Kurt told him. "I'm just glad to know that Taylor has such loyal friends."

"You're all right, Kurt Weller," Zapata pronounced. "I think I'm going to like you."

"So Taylor's going to work for you?" Reade asked. "What kind of work do you do?"

"With me, not for me," Kurt corrected. "Taylor's my new partner. And I'm a private investigator. I own T&K Investigations."

"T&K? Really?" Reade was impressed. "I have a few buddies in Missing Persons that have spoken highly of you. That will be right up Taylor's alley. She'd never admit it, but she's needed a change for a while now." That was why he hadn't pressed Mayfair to reinstate her sooner.

Kurt was just opening his mouth to respond when a familiar voice made him freeze and then turn slowly.

"Looking good, Detective Weller," Allison Knight teased as she approached the group outside Mayfair's office, surprised to see Kurt at FBI headquarters and in a suit and tie, no less. When they had been dating, he had grumbled about getting dressed up even when they were going out to dinner at a fancy restaurant.

"Allie," Kurt greeted as she hugged him, feeling Zapata's eyes on him as he drew back from their embrace. This had the potential to get very uncomfortable, very quickly. He'd completely forgotten that the Marshals worked out of the same building as the FBI. "It's been a while."

"Much too long," Allie agreed. "You should take me out sometime. Come on," she prodded when he hesitated. "I could call Mike at Attaboy, get our old table. Tell him to double stock the Lagavulin."

"Umm . . ." Kurt was taken aback and struggled to find a way to let Allie down gently when he spotted Taylor emerging from Mayfair's office and completely forgot what she'd asked him.

Allie followed his gaze, her brow furrowing. "You know Agent Shaw?"

"We were next-door neighbors growing up," Taylor told her as she approached, coming to stand next to Kurt and smiling as he slipped an arm around her waist to draw her closer. "How do the two of you know one another?"

Kurt hesitated as he glanced down at her. "Allie and I . . . we used to date. A little while."

"Really?" Taylor arched a brow as she looked from one to the other. "Small world." She would never have imagined the two of them together. "How little?"

Kurt shrugged. "About a year or so."

Allie's eyes narrowed at the familiarity between them. "So the two of you are seeing one another now?"

"Not just seeing one another," Zapata interjected gleefully. "They're _engaged_. Kurt just told me that he's loved Taylor since he was seventeen, and he asked her to marry him less than a week after their first date. Isn't that romantic?"

"Very," Allie murmured politely. "I have to admit, I'm a little bit surprised to hear it, though." Her expression was anything but pleased as she looked at Kurt. "I would not have pegged you as the settling-down type."

"Well, you know what they say," Zapata said, enjoying this far more than she should. "There's a lid for every pot. Of course, two pots could never make a go of it."

Kurt blinked. Had Taylor's friend just compared him and Allie—and him and Taylor by extension—to _cookware_? And used the metaphor to pan his failed relationship with Allie—no pun intended—while making it clear he belonged with her friend? Not that every bit of that wasn't true, but still . . .

"How would you know, Tasha?" Taylor asked to lessen the awkward silence that descended on the group. "I've been in your apartment. You don't even own more than one pot."

"Which is one more than you have in your apartment," Zapata shot back. "Or I should say, _had_. Since you've moved in with Kurt now, and judging by the picture you sent me, he's a good enough cook to have at least one set."

"Two, actually," Kurt confessed, and everyone laughed.

Allie glanced toward Mayfair's office. "Well, I hate to run, but I really need to talk to your boss. Kurt, it was nice seeing you again. And congratulations. To you, too, Agent Shaw," she added before walking off without a backwards glance.

"We should probably get going as well," Taylor said as Allie disappeared into Mayfair's office. "I'd like to get settled in a bit more before we meet up with you guys tonight for drinks."

"Settled in?" Zapata called after them as they headed for the elevator. "Is that code for christening your new place?"

Taylor simply laughed as the elevator doors began to slide shut. "See you later, Tasha."

"Your friend's quite a character," Kurt commented as the elevator descended. "I really like her. I'm also a big fan of that last suggestion of hers."

"Me too," Taylor agreed even as she stifled a yawn, "but I think I might need a little nap first. I really didn't get much sleep last night."

"I wouldn't mind a little rest myself," Kurt assured her. He drove them home, navigating through the traffic as quickly as safely possible and in short order, they were slipping into their pajamas and crawling under the covers.

"Kurt?" Taylor said as she rested her head on his chest and her eyes began to get heavy at the steady beat of his heart. "I'm really glad I'm the lid for your pot. I can't wait to be your wife, and really get our future started."

"What do you see?" Kurt asked her, rubbing a hand gently up and down her back. "In that future? Where do you see us in, say, five years' time?"

Taylor took a moment to consider the question. "I'd really like us to have a house of our own by then with a nice big fenced-in backyard, and maybe a dog as well. I always envied you and Sarah getting to have one growing up."

"What kind of dog?" Kurt questioned.

Taylor thought about it. "I think I'd like a Golden Retriever. Mayfair has one of those, and I've always really liked him. But I'd like a girl. And maybe a swimming pool as well. That's something else I always wanted as a kid. And of course, by that time, we'll probably have a kid or two of our own." She hoped.

"I really like the sound of that future," Kurt told her. "In fact, it sounds just about perfect to me." He hesitated. "So, do you want to go ahead and start house hunting and then sell the apartment?" He hated the thought of letting this place go, but he knew what he was gaining would be worth the sacrifice.

"Actually . . ." Taylor said slowly, "I'd really like to keep the apartment, since it's already paid for, if we can manage it. It's close to the office if we need to stay here some nights; it has all the creature comforts you love and I know I'm going to as well; and once the kids are grown, it will be the perfect size for just the two of us. There's even a park nearby where a dog can run, if we still have one." And she had a feeling they would never be without one again. "Of course, if we do that, we probably won't be able to afford the cabin." It just wouldn't make financial sense for them to purchase a third home that they would be visiting only occasionally.

"How do you feel about that?" Kurt asked cautiously.

Taylor hesitated. "A little sad in a way, I guess, since it was our first place together, but I know we'll make just as many wonderful memories, and even more, here and at the new house, when we find it. How about you?"

"The same," Kurt assured her. "I like the cabin, but home is where you are." He smiled as Taylor snuggled closer, wordlessly agreeing with him, and they both fell asleep in perfect harmony with one another.

It was nearly dusk when Kurt awakened, realizing he had slept much longer than he intended. "Taylor," he whispered, pressing kisses to her jaw and then her lips to awaken her. He smiled at her as her eyes blinked awake sleepily.

"Mmm," Taylor murmured as she stretched. "You can wake me up like that anytime." She sat up with a start as she suddenly realized how late it was and threw off the covers, leaping to her feet. "Oh, no. We should have set an alarm clock."

Kurt propped himself up on one elbow and grinned as Taylor made a dash for the bathroom. "It's not that late," he called after her before getting out of bed himself and following her into the other room. She had already started running a bath and was setting her toiletries along the edge. He wrapped his arms around her waist and nuzzled her neck. "There's no need to rush. We still have a couple hours until we need to head out and I seem to recall something about christening the apartment?"

"I vaguely remember that," Taylor teased, her laughter turning into a moan as she tilted her head to give Kurt easier access and he latched onto the spot at the base of her neck that always made her instantly go weak at the knees. "And I know I still owe you a rain check in the shower from the time Sawyer stayed with us. But—"

"No buts," Kurt said firmly. "Can't have you welshing on your debts to me, Miss Shaw."

"Never," Taylor assured him fervently, smiling at the hard feel of him as she wiggled closer to him and he rocked his hips into hers. He was as ready for her as she was for him. She smiled saucily at him as she spun out from his arms and walked over to the bathroom counter, removing her pajamas with more haste than finesse and depositing them in a heap. "I was only going to say that I hoped you didn't mind using the bathtub instead of the shower. I've been dying to try it out since I saw it."

"I don't mind at all," Kurt assured Taylor, tossing his boxers on the counter next to her discarded clothes. It was as good a place to start as any. He could see the impatience in her eyes, felt the same desire coursing through his veins, and knew this first encounter wasn't going to last long, wouldn't be nearly enough to sate the hunger he currently felt for her. He shut off the faucet and stepped into the bathtub, extending a hand to help her in as well before lowering himself into the water.

Taylor stepped in carefully, turning to face Kurt as he situated himself, and lowered herself to her knees facing him. She kissed him hard and deep, but wasted no time on any other preliminaries; she was already aching with need for him, and his hands automatically came to her hips to steady her as she sank down on him inch by agonizing inch, torturing them both until she was finally, fully, seated on him.

They rested their foreheads against one another's for a moment before beginning the intricate dance they had perfected over the past few weeks, the rhythm as old as time and yet uniquely their own. The tempo built quickly, and they each cried out the other's name as they reached that peak and tumbled over the edge together.

Taylor collapsed bonelessly onto Kurt's chest and he cradled her close as they both came back to earth. "You good?" he asked eventually.

"Never better," she reassured him as she lifted herself off him and turned to sit between his legs, closing her eyes in bliss as both of them sank deeper into the steamy water. "If we didn't have to go meet the team, I could stay like this forever."

"No, you couldn't," Kurt contradicted laughingly. "The water will eventually get cold. Besides," he added after a little more time passed, "you still owe me that rain check in the shower and if we get a move on, there's just enough time for you to pay your debt."

"You said the bathtub was an acceptable compromise!" Taylor protested halfheartedly, her blood already heating at the thought of round two.

"No, I said I didn't mind using the bathtub," Kurt corrected. "See, to my way of thinking this rain check has gone unclaimed for so long that I earned some interest on it, and this was the repayment for that. But the principal debt still remains."

"Clever," Taylor commented. "I can see I'm going to have to pay closer attention to the wording of any bargains I make with you in the future." She grinned back at him to let him know she was teasing. "In the meantime . . ." She stood gracefully and allowed the excess water to drain off of her before grabbing her toiletries and heading into the shower. "Never let it be said that I welshed on a debt. Just promise me that we won't be late to the bar," she pleaded. "Tasha will never let me hear the end of it if we are."

"Mmm," Kurt agreed as he followed her, his mind already on a different subject entirely. "I promise."


	23. Chapter Twenty-Two

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Of course they were late to the bar.

Taylor groaned as she spotted the irrepressible gleam in Tasha's eyes as she and Kurt approached the group. They weren't that late—less than ten minutes, and that was due more to unexpected traffic than their activities prior to leaving the apartment—but no amount of persuasion would be sufficient to convince her friend of that. Tasha had a one-track mind when it came to things like that, and since this was the first chance she'd had to tease Taylor, she would likely do so unmercifully.

It didn't help that she would be partially right.

"Hey, guys," Taylor greeted. "Sorry we're late. There was a bad car accident on the way here, and—"

"Stuff it, Shaw," Zapata said playfully. "We all know why the two of you are _really_ late. Just tell us: is your fiancé as good in bed as he is good-looking?"

In the bed. In the shower. In the bathtub. Taylor did her best to keep a straight face, though her cheeks reddened slightly, as she responded, "I don't have any complaints." Best just to nip Tasha's line of inquiry in the bud if she could, and she had the satisfaction of seeing her friend momentarily dumbfounded before she attempted to rebound.

"Stow it, Zapata," Reade said, mirroring her advice to Taylor moments earlier. "This is a night to celebrate Taylor and Kurt's engagement, not get a play-by-play on their sex life."

 _Thank you, Reade_ , Taylor thought silently. She cast around her mind for a suitable change of subject and glanced at Patterson. "Borden couldn't come with you tonight?"

"No." A fleeting look of disappointment crossed Patterson's face. "He got called in to Bellevue to consult on an urgent case, but he said to tell you he's happy to hear you're back and he's anxious to learn about your trip. He'd like to meet with you tomorrow, if you're available. Don't worry," she added hastily. "I didn't tell him you were engaged, or that you were quitting. I thought you would want to do that."

"Thanks, Patterson," Taylor said gratefully. "I'll be stopping by the FBI tomorrow to sign some paperwork to make my resignation official and clean out my locker, but I don't know what time that will be yet. I would like to talk to him if he's free while I'm there." She was hoping he would agree to continue seeing her for a while even though she was no longer an FBI agent; she knew he took on freelance patients on a case-by-case basis.

"I'll pass that message along," Patterson promised. "I'm sure he'll make time for you."

"Enough of this," Zapata said impatiently. "This is a party, not a counseling session. Let's get it started. What would the two of you like to drink? We're buying."

They placed their drink orders and once they had arrived, Zapata got down to business. "So, Kurt," she began. "Patterson and I got to talking after you left this afternoon, and we started wondering why if you've loved Taylor so long, you never tracked her down. As a private investigator, it would have been easy for you to do." He wouldn't be worth his salt if he couldn't have.

Talk about a loaded question. Kurt resisted the urge to glance at Taylor as he considered how to answer without revealing things that it was only her place to share. "I guess I just felt like Taylor had the right to privacy, that she wasn't obligated to return my feelings, and I didn't want to burden her with them if she was happy in the new life she had built for herself. I had intended to look her up this year, but then, uh . . . Well . . ."

"It's okay, Kurt," Taylor said quietly as she watched him struggle. "I intended to tell them anyway, so we might as well do it together." She took a sip of her drink and then reached for his hand, squeezing it tightly as she began the narration, and the two of them took turns detailing their respective parts.

Everyone was silent when they finished. Patterson, predictably, had tears in her eyes and she hugged them both fiercely. "Wow," Zapata eventually said to Kurt. "For such a nice guy, you come from a real son-of-a-bitch."

"He takes after his mother," Taylor interjected, and everyone laughed.

"It's a good thing your dad's dead," Zapata continued. "Or I would definitely be enlisting Patterson here to visit that threat I made against you earlier on him."

"You'd have had to get in line," Kurt told her and smiled at her look of satisfaction.

"What threat is that?" Taylor asked, though she had a feeling she already knew. She loved her friends, but sometimes they forgot just how capable she was of taking care of herself.

"Oh, you know," Zapata said airily. "The one where we threatened to pull him limb from limb if he hurt so much as one hair on your head. Just a friendly warning, really."

A friendly warning. Right. Taylor was just about to issue a friendly warning of her own when Reade spoke up. "Didn't you say this was a party? I think we should toast Taylor and Kurt's engagement." He raised his glass, and the others did the same. "To Taylor and Kurt. May you have many happy years together, and may your future be much less complicated than your past."

Taylor's laugh was infectious as she raised her glass, and Kurt couldn't keep the grin off his own face as he hugged her close and joined in the toast as well, all of them clinking their glasses together before drinking. Unfortunately, the happy moment was short-lived.

"Hi, Taylor."

Taylor felt her smile freeze on her face as she recognized that voice, and she lowered her glass slowly before turning to face her worst nightmare. "Hello, Oscar."

Oscar took a few steps toward her as if to hug her, and Kurt instantly stepped between the two of them. Reade and Zapata crowded close as well, the three of them forming a protective shield between Taylor and her crazy ex-boyfriend. Kurt's eyes had gone from laugh-filled to ice-cold in an instant. "Back up," he snarled at Oscar. He couldn't tell the man to get the hell out of here or call the cops, not without that restraining order, but he was going to make damn sure Taylor's stalker gave her a wide berth.

Oscar's brow furrowed with confusion as he looked at Taylor. "Who's he?"

Taylor stepped out from behind Kurt and allowed him to pull her into his side. "He's my fiancé, Oscar." She broke the news as gently as she could. "We've loved each other since we were kids, and we're getting married soon."

Oscar took a shocked step back. "Engaged? Taylor . . . please, tell me you're kidding. You know how I feel about you. You know how much I love you. You can't do this. I won't let you." He turned to Kurt. "Taylor and I are destined to be together. If you try to interfere in that, I'll make you regret it."

Kurt's eyes instantly turned ice-cold and his hands clenched into fists as he took a menacing step toward Oscar. "I'd like to see you try," he growled, intending to give this worthless piece of shit the beating of his life.

Reade and Zapata stepped between them. "Don't do it, man," Reade advised him. "He's not worth it." He glared at Oscar. "You. Get out of here before I call one of those NYPD officers over to arrest you for disturbing the peace."

Oscar hesitated, glancing from Kurt to Taylor and back again. "This isn't over," he spat. "I meant what I said. Don't forget it." Kurt lunged at him again and Reade once again held him back as Oscar finally turned and left.

Kurt blew out a breath once Oscar finally disappeared from sight and Taylor held his gaze as she hugged him, feeling the tension gradually drain from his body as she wordlessly assured him that she was all right, that they would be okay. "Any more smitten exes I need to know about?" he teased, albeit with a slight edge to his voice.

"Hey!" Zapata scolded. " _Your_ ex just asked you out this morning, so you're not exactly blameless in that department yourself, mister."

"Allie asked you out?" Taylor arched an eyebrow. "Funny, I don't recall you mentioning that to me on the way home."

Kurt's gaze turned sheepish. "In my defense, I had my mind on . . . other things at the time." Tasha's suggestion that they christen their apartment had been a good one, but unnecessary; he'd been thinking of nothing else since learning he would be able to accompany Taylor here. And he was just getting started.

"That's true," Tasha confirmed. "The man practically swallowed his tongue when he caught sight of you coming out of Mayfair's office. I don't think he even remembered his own name at that point, much less what Allie had just asked him. You don't ever have to worry about this one straying, that's for sure."

"No," Taylor agreed softly. "I definitely don't." She smiled at Kurt before taking another sip of her drink and the others followed suit. They took seats at their usual table and deliberately forced Oscar's interruption from their minds as they talked and laughed for well over an hour before reluctantly getting up to leave.

Reade and Zapata insisted on following them home to ensure Oscar didn't resurface to make good on his threat, and Taylor didn't argue. She made a mental note to get a sketch of him to their doorman as quickly as possible to keep him from ever being granted access to the building.

"I had fun tonight," Kurt told Taylor as the elevator ascended to their floor. "I really like your friends. I'm looking forward to getting to know them better."

"I'm glad." Taylor leaned her head against Kurt's shoulder as they walked into their apartment. He shed his suit jacket and discarded his tie and she kicked off her shoes before both of them collapsed on the couch. He pulled her close and she drew her legs up under her and tucked her head beneath his chin. "I'm sorry about Oscar, Kurt. I should have told you about him much sooner. If anything happens to you because of me—"

"Hey!" Kurt placed a finger under Taylor's chin and lifted her head until she met his eyes. "Nothing is going to happen to me. We've got each other's backs, remember? But if something were to happen, it wouldn't be your fault, Taylor." He needed her to believe that more than anything in the world. "Oscar's actions are on him, not you. I know you've done nothing to encourage his interest in you."

"Mmm," Taylor agreed. "Still—"

Kurt placed a finger to her lips. "No buts. You are absolutely not responsible for this, and I don't ever want to hear you suggest that you are again."

Taylor blinked a little at his stern tone. "Fair enough. I was just going to say that I'd like you to get a restraining order as well since he did threaten you tonight. If he comes near you, I want the cops to be able to throw his ass in jail."

"Deal," Kurt said. He kissed the top of her head. "Now come on, let's get to bed. Morning's going to be here before we know it, and I can think of better uses for the energy I've got left than talking about your crazy ex." Like making slow, sweet love to her in their new bed. He stood up carefully, never relinquishing his hold on her, and headed back to their bedroom to do just that.

xxx

Morning did indeed come early, and the day fairly flew by. Their first stop was Liz's church, and both Taylor and Kurt were instantly comfortable with Father O'Bryan. They were able to book the date they wanted, as well as set up a time for the requisite premarital counseling. Taylor blew out a relieved breath as they got back in the car. "One thing down, about a thousand more to go."

Kurt gave her hand a gentle squeeze as he pulled out of the parking lot and turned back in the direction they had come. "I know it seems overwhelming at the moment, but we'll get it done, Tee. And we're going to have a lot of help." Liz had been texting them nonstop since they left the office yesterday and their mothers and Sarah were sure to pitch in as well.

"I know," Taylor replied. "And I'm really looking forward to planning it. I just don't want to get so caught up in the planning that I become one of those Bridezillas you read about in the news that can't even take the time to enjoy it because they're obsessing over every little detail. I just want a memorable day without all the stress."

"And that's what we'll have," Kurt assured her, grinning at the image her words painted. "You couldn't be a Bridezilla if you tried, Tee; it's just not in your nature." He glanced at her. "I know you're going to have a lot on your plate right now with all the changes you're making, so we can look into hiring a wedding planner if you'd like."

Taylor considered it for a moment but shook her head. "It's a good idea, but no. I know Mom really wants to do this together, and I have a feeling Liz would take it as a personal affront if we did that." Once Kurt's assistant had decided she passed muster, she had dived into the wedding preparations with a vengeance.

"Probably," Kurt agreed with a laugh. "So our families can help us with the preparation, and Liz will be great at coordinating all those last-minute details, so none of us have to stress. This will be a piece of cake."

"Well, I don't know if I'd go that far, but—" Taylor paused abruptly as she spotted the sign she had noticed earlier on the way to the church. It was a realtor's sign for a house for sale nearby and apparently they were having an open house right now.

Kurt followed her gaze. "Want to go see it?"

Taylor nodded eagerly. It was a beautiful neighborhood, peaceful with spacious houses and well-manicured lawns, but still only a few minutes away from the stores in the area. It would mean a longer commute back and forth to the office, but it seemed like a perfect place to raise a family.

Her breath caught in her throat as Kurt parked at the curb and she got her first glimpse of the structure. It was a large, light-colored, two-story brick Colonial sitting on a sizable lot, with a paved walkway dividing the yard leading to the front door. She instantly felt the same sense of home that had encompassed her when she'd first visited Kurt's cabin. "Oh . . . wow."

"Wow," Kurt echoed. If the interior of this house was anything like the exterior promised, he was sold, and he could see Taylor felt the same way. He shut off the motor and came around to Taylor's side of the vehicle, opening her door for her. "Shall we?"

Taylor reached for Kurt's hand as they strolled up the walkway and entered the house. The entryway was spacious and well-lit, with beautiful marbled floors and a tall glass table directly across from them with flyers about the house. There was a stairway to their left and on the right was a large dining room and immediately beyond that, the kitchen.

Two women approached them, one a perky blonde in a business suit that Taylor instantly pegged as the realtor, the other a silver-haired older woman with a quiet dignity and a welcoming smile that suggested she might be the homeowner.

"Hi!" the perky blonde greeted them. "I'm Courtney Thompson, the realtor for this property, and this is Mrs. Moore, the home's owner. You two are quite the early birds."

Kurt smiled. "Well, we just happened to be in the neighborhood booking a church for our wedding when we saw the sign for your open house and decided to check it out. I'm Kurt Weller, and this is my fiancée, Taylor Shaw, by the way. It's nice to meet you, Ms. Thompson, Mrs. Moore."

"Please," Mrs. Moore interrupted cheerfully, "call me Emily. Mrs. Moore makes me feel like my mother-in-law, God rest her soul. And congratulations, Kurt, Taylor. I hope you have as many wonderful years together as I did with my late husband, may he rest in peace."

Taylor smiled. Mrs. Moore was clearly a character. "Thank you . . . Emily." She hesitated, feeling like she should say more, but before she could formulate a response, the woman went on.

"I'm just waiting for a friend to come pick me up, and then I'll be out of your hair. In the meantime, feel free to look around to your hearts' content or you could have Ms. Thompson show you around, if you prefer. Have you been looking for a house long? Planning on starting a family soon?"

"We hope to start one before too much longer," Taylor told her, ignoring the pointed look the realtor shot her client. She probably thought Emily had just cost them a potential sale, but Taylor found the older woman charming. "And this is the first house we've visited. We were in the neighborhood to book a church for our wedding and saw your sign, so we decided to drop by."

"And if you have the time and don't mind," Kurt added, "we'd like for you to be our tour guide." No disrespect intended to Ms. Thompson, but Emily was the one who had lived in this house all these years, and she clearly loved the place. He wanted to hear about it from her perspective.

Emily's face lit up at his request, confirming he had made the right decision. "I'd love to. Jack and I designed this house together after we were married, so we've been the only owners and it's been well taken care of," she told them as she led them into the dining room. "We'd hoped to pass it on to one of our children one day, but . . . well, they all moved out of state after college and never looked back and . . ." She shrugged.

"For a house this beautiful, I believe I'd have found a job here in New York," Taylor said sincerely as they moved from the dining room to the kitchen. Kurt's eyes lit up at the state-of-the-art appliances and spacious countertops, and she smiled as she watched him, no doubt already picturing where he would put all his utensils and the first meal he would cook in here.

Emily caught sight of that look as well. "I'm guessing you're the cook in the family. That's the exact opposite of my Jack. He tried his best on special occasions, but the man could burn water. How long have the two of you been together, if you don't mind my asking?"

Kurt glanced at Taylor. "Officially, only a few weeks, but in every way that matters . . . all our lives. We grew up next door to one another and fell in love as kids; it just took us a while to work things out. But now that we have, we don't want to waste a second of our time together."

"Childhood sweethearts." Emily's eyes took on a distant gleam as she recalled her own long-ago past. "We have that in common. Finding that someone you're meant to be with is always special, but there's nothing quite like having a whole lifetime of memories from growing up with them."

"No," Taylor agreed softly. "There's not." She linked hands with Kurt as they followed Emily out back, and she knew instantly, even though they hadn't seen much of the interior: this was their home. They could remodel if need be to suit them, but they would never find another yard this perfect.

The yard was even more spacious than it had hinted at from the front: it ran the entire length of the house, as well as along the right side. There would be more than enough space to put in a pool, if they chose to, with room to spare. The back porch was large enough for family cookouts, and was conveniently shaded by a mid-sized tree in the far back corner. The fence was perfect as well, wooden and solid enough to contain a dog and tall enough to give them all the privacy they could desire.

She could already picture their kids throwing a ball back here or learning to ride a bike.

"We had a lot of good times out here," Emily said wistfully. "I'd like to see the next family that gets it do the same, instead of sitting inside playing video games all the time. Kids should be out enjoying the fresh air and sunshine."

They hadn't discussed it, but Taylor had a feeling their kids would be. Both of them had been involved in sports, and she would like to see their children follow in that tradition, as well as being active as a family. The teamwork they had learned there had been invaluable later in life. Video games should be an evening and rainy day pastime.

"Yes, they should," Kurt said, and Taylor smiled as once again they were in complete agreement. The two of them shared one last look around the yard before following Emily back inside for the rest of the tour.

The house boasted three levels, including a basement that was basically an apartment in and of itself, and even had a large three-car garage with a separate apartment above it. The family level had four bedrooms and three bathrooms, and the master suite had the same luxurious amenities as their apartment. Really, this house seemed to have been tailor-made for them. Apart from a few creative differences, which could easily be remedied with a few coats of paint and their own furnishings, Taylor couldn't find one thing she didn't love about the place. She couldn't believe they had stumbled on it their first time out.

Hearing that it was in an excellent school district sealed the deal. "We'll take it," Kurt said after exchanging a glance with Taylor, and the four of them quickly set about working out the details. Kurt would have the realtor he had worked with in the past set up an appraisal, and since they intended to pay cash, they would close the deal when they returned from Clearfield permanently in ten days or so.

Taylor's smile was so beautiful Kurt couldn't resist swinging her around in his arms as they returned to their car. "We just bought a house. Together."

"Not just a house, Tee," Kurt corrected, kissing her lingeringly before setting her to her feet and opening her car door for her. "We just bought our home for . . . oh, I don't know, the next twenty years or so, at least."

 _Home_. Taylor let the word sink in as she slid into her seat and studied the structure as Kurt came around to his side. Home was what she had been longing for all these years, but it wasn't the building she had been missing: it was the people. One person in particular. "You're my home," she said quietly. "Wherever you are. I love this new place, but I could be just as happy in my cracker box old apartment as long as I was with you." She would have moved into a cardboard box under a bridge, if she had to, in order to be with him. "I love you."

Kurt smiled at her as he threaded his fingers through hers. "I love you, too, Tee. And I would have moved to the ends of the earth to be with you." She held his heart and she always would. "I can't wait to marry you and have a family with you and spend the rest of my life with you."

Nor could she. And she wouldn't take a single one of those days for granted, not after spending so many lonely days and weeks and years without him. She was going to savor every hour, every minute, every second, with him, and treasure every memory they made together. Starting with planning their wedding.

Life had granted them a second chance, and she wasn't going to waste a single moment of it.


	24. Chapter Twenty-Three

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

By the time they had stopped at the courthouse to gain restraining orders and stopped by their respective banks to consolidate their accounts, it was mid-afternoon. Taylor and Kurt headed straight to Borden's office when they arrived at the NYO, and as promised, he quickly made himself available.

"Agent Shaw," Borden greeted her. "It's good to see you again. I've been anxious to hear how your trip to Clearfield went." He glanced from her to Kurt, waiting for her to introduce them.

"Dr. Borden," Taylor said hesitantly, "this is my fiancé, Kurt Weller. Kurt, this is my shrink, Dr. Robert Borden." She watched nervously as the two men sized each other up.

"Kurt . . . Weller," Borden said slowly. "You're engaged to Tom Weller's son?"

Taylor winced at the subtle note of censure in his voice, but Kurt spoke up before she could frame her reply. "Yes, she is. And I consider myself the most fortunate man in the world to have won her heart. I'm also happy to report that my father is finally rotting in hell, where he belongs."

Borden blinked, not sure how to respond to that. The man was certainly direct, which he appreciated, but he had to wonder, given everything he knew of Taylor's history, if he was really the best choice for her. Not that he would be given a say in the matter, judging by the stubborn set of her chin. "Nevertheless, I'm sorry for your loss."

"Thank you," Kurt said coolly. "But the only loss that matters to me is the loss of the past thirteen-plus years with Taylor and the pain my father's actions inflicted on her. I can understand you might be concerned because of my relationship to him, but I assure you, I never doubted for a moment she was telling me the truth, and I support her completely." He always had, and he always would.

Borden nodded slowly. "I appreciate your candor, but I have to admit, your engagement has come as a bit of a surprise. Taylor has mentioned you to me, but she never told me that your feelings for one another went deeper than pseudo-siblings. So perhaps you could fill in a few blanks for me."

"I can do that," Taylor offered. "I didn't tell you about my feelings for Kurt because . . . well, honestly, I had no idea that he shared them, so it didn't seem relevant. I assumed he'd probably been married for a dozen years and had half that many kids by now."

Kurt quirked an eyebrow at her. "Half a dozen kids, really? Is that how many you're planning on having with me?"

Taylor snorted. "Not unless you're planning on carrying half of them. I think three is plenty, mister." And that way, each child could have their own bedroom in the new house. With room to spare when one of their mothers came to visit.

The two of them grinned at one another until Borden cleared his throat, quietly reminding them that they weren't alone. "Right. Sorry, Doc," Taylor said apologetically. She glanced at Kurt again before launching into her story once more, Kurt chiming in occasionally to clarify one point or another. Borden was silent when she finished, and she leaned forward in her seat, gripping Kurt's hand tightly as she waited to hear what he had to say.

"Wow," Borden said after several long moments. "You've certainly had an eventful few weeks. I'm glad you were able to get closure with the past before Tom Weller passed away, but I have to say, I'm a little bit concerned that you're making so many life-altering decisions right now. That's a lot of change to adjust to all at once."

Taylor didn't take offense. "A lot of good changes. Having people back in my life that care about me and someone to go home to at the end of the day who understands and supports me . . . I would think you would be all for that."

"I am," Borden said quietly. "I'm thrilled for you, Taylor." Her eyebrows rose; he rarely used first names in these sessions. "I just question the wisdom of changing careers to work together and getting married so quickly. You already made a huge step by moving in together after such a short time; perhaps you should just slow down now and let the relationship mature for a bit before choosing to intertwine your lives that completely. If either of you decides you need space, you won't exactly have anywhere to go to get it."

Taylor frowned. She hadn't considered that. Not that it would have changed her decision any, but . . . "Kurt?"

"I've had fourteen years of space," Kurt told her, "and I've missed you every day. I don't need any more time to make up my mind, but I'll understand if you want to slow things down a little. I'm willing to give you whatever you need to make this work, Tee." She had never even had a serious boyfriend before, after all. Perhaps he had rushed things somewhat.

"I don't need any more time either," Taylor assured him. "I don't have any concerns at all about having trouble separating our personal from our professional relationship. And I don't want to wait a minute longer than we've planned to marry you. The only thing that does worry me is how angry you are at your dad."

"You were still angry at him too," Kurt protested. "And really, after everything he's put you through—put _us_ through—"

"But I can still separate the good times from the bad," Taylor told him. "I've spent enough time with Dr. Borden here to be able to remember the fun times we had as kids with him without it being overshadowed by what he did. I want you to be able to do the same, Kurt. I don't want your anger at him to consume you for the rest of your life. Trust me, I know how crippling that can be, and I don't want that for you. I don't want him to have that kind of hold over us for the rest of our lives."

Kurt nodded slowly. There was a lot of wisdom in what Taylor was saying, but that didn't mean he had to like it. But he did need to make the effort. For her . . . and for himself. "I don't suppose you're taking on new clients, are you, Doc?"

"In general, I only work with the FBI," Borden said. "Though I do take on a few special cases at my discretion. Given that you're Taylor's fiancé, and she's been a patient of mine for several years, I think I can fit you in as long as she's comfortable with that. Even though she's leaving the Bureau, I'd like to also have some group sessions with the two of you to help you establish boundaries between your personal and professional lives, and work on some techniques to help you successfully deal with any conflicts that do arise."

"I'd like that," Taylor said. "I'm sure you'll be able to help Kurt—and us—just as much as you have me over the years. I know I haven't said it enough, but I really appreciate all your help, Doc."

Borden smiled. "I can't say it's always been a pleasure, but I'm glad I was able to help." He set up a time to meet with Kurt, and then changed the subject. "So. Are we still on for dinner tonight?"

"As long as Patterson can get free, we are," Taylor confirmed. "I was going to head up to her lab next to make sure she's not got caught up in some big case."

Borden glanced at his watch. "We've still got twenty minutes left in our session. Why don't you go ahead and do that, and I'll talk to Kurt for a few minutes? I'll bring him upstairs when the time is up."

"Sure," Taylor said agreeably. She rose and kissed Kurt on the cheek, biting back a smile at his deer-in-the-headlights look. "Have fun, honey." She exited the room before he could come up with an excuse to go with her.

Even though Borden had promised to bring Kurt right up to her, it was nearly two hours before they saw each other again. Tasha had been in Patterson's lab when Taylor arrived, and she used the opportunity to grill her on all the intimate details of their relationship that Reade had vetoed hearing about last night.

By the time Taylor escaped that inquisition, without revealing too many personal details, much to her amusement and Tasha's disgust, Kurt was nowhere to be found. A thorough canvas of the agents on her floor revealed that he had left on an errand after being seen talking to Mayfair, but her boss—former boss, she amended silently—was tightlipped about what their conversation had entailed or where Kurt might have gone.

She was quick to put Taylor to work signing all the necessary papers to end her employment with the Bureau, however. By the time she had finished that, Kurt had returned—and he wasn't alone. Her eyes filled with tears as she spotted what he was carrying.

"I know it's a couple weeks early, but happy birthday, Tee," Kurt said as he placed the dark golden retriever puppy in her arms.

Her heart melted as she gazed down into the puppy's warm brown eyes and the puppy licked her chin. "Oh, Kurt." She kept a secure hold on the dog as she reached out with her free arm to hug him fiercely. "She's beautiful. Thank you."

"You're very welcome." Kurt kissed her cheek and ruffled the puppy's silken fur.

"She's a half-sister to Felix," Mayfair spoke up. Taylor had often stayed at her place with him when she had to go out of town, and her dog loved Taylor almost as much as he did her.

"Really?" Taylor's smile bloomed even wider and she cuddled the puppy under her chin. "So you're an extra-special little girl then. Your big brother is a favorite of mine." She couldn't believe Kurt had managed to procure a sibling of his for her. She glanced at her former boss. "Thank you, Mayfair."

Mayfair smiled. "I hear you just bought a house with a great yard, so you can repay me by keeping Felix on occasion. Just because you don't work here any longer doesn't mean you have to be a stranger."

"I don't plan to be," Taylor assured her. "And I'll be more than happy to watch Felix for you. You can call on me anytime."

"Wait. Back up." Tasha was incredulous. "You guys bought a house together, and you didn't think to mention that to me?"

Taylor smiled sheepishly. "Well, we haven't officially purchased it yet. We came across it this morning after we booked the church, and we're going to close the deal when we come back to New York. And I would have told you that, but you had so many questions about . . . other things that it slipped my mind."

"I'm so happy for you guys!" Patterson hugged them both before patting the puppy on the head. "So. What are you going to name her?"

"Umm . . ." Taylor wasn't sure. She didn't exactly have much experience in that department.

Mayfair intervened. "Get to know her for a few days. The right name will come to you." Otherwise, the dog would likely be saddled with a name that didn't fit her and that Taylor ultimately wound up being unhappy with.

Taylor nodded thankfully. "That's a good idea. I'll do that." Hopefully the right name would come to her soon.

"Do you still want to go out for dinner?" Patterson asked doubtfully. "I mean, with a new puppy at home . . ."

"How would you feel about coming to our apartment for dinner instead?" Kurt asked after exchanging a quick glance with Taylor. "I promise I'll be the one doing the cooking."

Taylor just grinned, not in the least offended at the reference to her lack of domestic skills. She more than made up for it in other departments. She hoped. "Yeah, Kurt's a really good cook," she assured her friend. "I guarantee the food will be edible."

Kurt frowned at her in mock consternation. "Just _edible_?" he demanded.

"Mouth-watering," she amended. "Scrumptious. Irresistible." She shot him a sassy glance. "Is that better?"

"Much," Kurt said, leaning down to kiss her lingeringly.

"It sounds divine," Patterson said, recalling them to the present. "We'd love to come." She and Zapata had already been plotting an excuse to see Taylor's new place, and she knew Tasha would demand that she take plenty of pictures. "What time?"

Kurt glanced at his watch. "It will probably be around seven thirty before dinner is ready, since we need to run by a pet store to pick up some things for the puppy, but feel free to come over earlier than that if you want. I'm sure Taylor would love to have more time to chat with you."

"We'll do that," Patterson agreed. "Would you like us to bring dessert? We could pick up a cheesecake from Taylor's favorite bakery."

Judging by the way Taylor's eyes lit up, that was a definite _yes._ "I'd appreciate that. And now, we'd really better head out if I'm going to get dinner ready on time." He and Taylor said their goodbyes, Taylor promising to set up a time to get together as soon as she returned, and they headed to the elevator.

Taylor laughed as she shifted the puppy in her arms on the way down, and the puppy began showering her with kisses. "I think she likes me."

"What's not to like?" Kurt asked, and then his eyes narrowed. "Well, other than leaving me alone with your shrink. That was a cruel thing to do to your fiancé, Tee."

"He's your shrink now too," she pointed out practically. And since Kurt himself had asked him to be, she knew he was just protesting for the heck of it. She returned her attention to the puppy. "I really hope I can come up with a name for her soon. Before she decides it's 'Girl' because I call her 'Here, girl' so often."

"In that case, why not give her a temporary name instead?" Kurt suggested. "You can change it once you think of one that suits her better. If she's going to get used to something, better it be something more creative than 'Girl.'

"Any suggestions?" Taylor asked.

Kurt hesitated. He had a feeling once she settled on a name, she wouldn't be changing it, and the last thing he wanted to do was name her dog. "What's the first thing that came to mind when you saw her?" he questioned her. "The first thing you thought of when Patterson asked you what you were going to name her?"

"Penny," Taylor said promptly. "Because her coat is copper and shiny like a new penny. And she's sweet but also a little bit feisty just like a girl I knew back in high school by that name." They had entered the parking garage, and the puppy was struggling to get down so she could go explore.

"There you go, then," Kurt said as he opened her car door for her and took the squirming pup so she could get in and buckle her seat belt before depositing the newly-named Penny on her lap.

"Your name," Taylor told the pup as Kurt walked around the car and slid behind the wheel. '"You're Penny." Penny yawned, seemingly unimpressed by the momentous moment, and Taylor laughed at her reaction.

She was much more impressed by the pet store. It was all Taylor could do to hold her as they walked inside and she spotted another customer's dog, and they headed straight for the harnesses and leashes to make it easier to control her.

Once she was outfitted in those (as well as an identical harness in the next size up for when she got bigger), they picked out a crate for her to ride in the car in, puppy chow, food bowls, and a super-soft doggie bed. Taylor half-jokingly suggested that she could share theirs, but the look Kurt shot her put an end to any thought of that.

They more than made up for that future deprivation in the number of extras they purchased her, though. Plush toys, squeaky toys, rope tug-of-war toys, and practically every flavor of treat on the shelf landed in their cart. By the time they made it to the register, the cart was nearly overflowing, and Taylor was staggered at the final price. She strongly suspected it was more than had been spent on all her previous fourteen birthdays that they had been apart combined, and this was only the first present.

By the time they got done at the pet store, it was so late that Kurt decided a menu change was in order and swung by a local grocery store to pick up ingredients for a much simpler meal than he had initially planned. They arrived back at the apartment only a few minutes before Patterson and Borden arrived. Penny had been scampering about, happily exploring her new home, but she ran toward the door when the knock sounded, announcing the arrival of their visitors with a deceptively deep bark.

Taylor kept a tight hold on her as she opened the door. "Hey, Patterson. Hey, Doc. Come on in." She ushered them inside and quickly closed the door to keep an inquisitive Penny from peering out into the hallway.

"She's absolutely precious," Patterson said, scooping the puppy up as soon as she shrugged out of her coat. She smiled as she saw all the dog toys already strewn around the apartment. "And you've made yourself right at home, haven't you, sweetie? Good for you."

"I've decided to call her Penny," Taylor mentioned as she hung up their coats. "At least for now. Unless I think of something that suits her better." Though she had a feeling the name was going to stick.

"Why would you change it? Penny seems like a perfect name for you to me," Patterson crooned to the pup, laughing when she licked her chin. "See? She agrees."

"I don't know," Taylor teased, secretly pleased that her friend felt the name suited her dog so well. "She seemed a little underwhelmed with it earlier." She glanced toward the kitchen, where Kurt was hard at work on dinner. "Would you like something to drink, Patterson? Doc?"

"Not at the moment," Borden said, "but I would like it if you would call me Robert when we're in social situations like this. We're not doctor and patient here; we're just . . .friends." Or he would like to be. He'd always tried to maintain a professional distance in the past, as his profession demanded, but that was going to be impossible here, since Patterson and Taylor were such good friends. Hopefully, she and Kurt wouldn't need his help much longer, and he wouldn't have to work so hard to maintain that distinction any longer.

Patterson declined a drink as well, and they all took seats in the living room, alternately chatting and laughing about Penny's antics for about forty-five minutes until Kurt announced dinner was ready.

"Wow," Patterson said as she took her first bite of the orange-ginger glazed Cornish hen, which was served over wild rice and with fresh green beans. "Taylor wasn't kidding. You are a really good cook, Kurt."

Borden added his compliments as well, and Kurt smiled as he thanked them.

"Yeah," Taylor teased. "He's terrific. He does the dishes as well. And takes out the trash. He's going to make someone a really great housewife someday."

Patterson and Borden roared with laughter. Kurt joined in as well, even as he shook his head at her. "No, honey, not _someone,_ " he corrected. "I'm all yours." Even though it wouldn't be official until the first Saturday in March, for all intents and purposes, he already felt married.

Taylor's heart melted at his sweet words, and she leaned over to kiss him. They broke apart just in time for her to see Patterson put her phone away and she narrowed her eyes at her friend. "Did you just take a picture of us?"

"No!" Patterson denied, but her face gave away the truth. "Yes. Tasha threatened me with bodily harm if I didn't show up to work tomorrow with lots and lots of pictures. "I'm sorry, okay? I can delete it if—"

Taylor held out a hand. "Let me see it." Patterson reluctantly handed her phone over, and Taylor studied the photo. Patterson had caught them just before they kissed, their eyes soft and filled with laughter as they gazed at one another, their faces mere inches apart. The love they felt for one another practically leaped off the screen. It was quite possibly the best photograph she'd ever seen taken of them. "No. Don't delete it. In fact, send it to me. I'd love to print a copy of this."

"I will," Patterson promised as Taylor returned her phone and she breathed a quiet sigh of relief as she put it away. If Tasha wanted more pictures, she could take them herself when she came over.

The four of them lingered over dinner, Robert and Kurt finding a great deal more than either had expected to in common, and when they reluctantly got ready to depart, he and Patterson made Taylor and Kurt promise to have dinner with them again upon their return, with it being their treat next time.

Taylor smiled at Kurt as he closed the door behind them, and they were once again alone in their apartment. _Well, not quite alone any longer_ , she amended as Penny pounced on her shoe, convinced the shoelace was another chew toy. She gently extricated it from Penny's mouth and shooed the playful pup toward an actual toy. "So. That went well."

"I like your friends," Kurt agreed. "Even Robert. I wasn't too sure at first . . . but he's a really nice guy." _In spite of his profession,_ he left unsaid.

"Yeah, he is." Taylor had been more than a little nervous about that as well, about interacting with him on a social level after being his patient for so long, but she needn't have worried. The same skills that enabled him to be such an effective shrink had put her at ease in this situation as well.

"You know what else I'd like?" Kurt asked huskily as he came up behind her and nuzzled her neck.

"What?" Taylor asked, as if she didn't already know, a shiver running down her spine, her body already beginning to respond to his nearness. That tone of voice was a dead giveaway. The only question was _where._ Kurt had informed her of his intention to make love to her in every room of their apartment, and they'd already christened the bathtub, the shower, and their bed. She had been more than amenable to his plan, and she smiled now as he turned her in his arms, lifting her and carrying her over to the couch.

Soon, there was no thought in either of their heads but him and her, and the magic they were making together.

They were more than a little late getting on the road to Clearfield the next morning.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Four

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

As much as Taylor had hated leaving New York, she was happy to be back in Clearfield once more. The sleepy little town was a welcome change from the hustle and bustle of the big cities she'd lived in for more than a decade. It was a shame they weren't going to be able to buy the cabin, but she was sure her mom wouldn't mind them inhabiting her childhood bedroom whenever they visited.

The drive had taken them much longer than normal, since they had stopped frequently to allow Penny to stretch her legs and use the bathroom, and as soon as they had unloaded their stuff and eaten a quick lunch, Kurt headed into the station.

"Well, Penny," Taylor said as she watched him leave, "I guess it's just you and me, girl." She brought the pup's bed into their bedroom, Penny trotting at her heels, and once she had her settled, set to work unpacking their stuff. That didn't take long, and once she was done, she puttered around the house for a while before deciding to go visit her mom, and Maggie and Sarah, let them know she and Kurt were back in town and show off Penny. She had a feeling Sawyer was going to be requesting a puppy of his own in the near future.

She hummed to herself as she pulled into the driveway and headed up the walkway with Penny. "Mom?" she called as she entered the house.

"In here," Emma called from the living room, she and her guests getting to their feet as Taylor entered the room with a small Golden Retriever puppy trotting on a leash at her side. She blinked in surprise, her words of greeting dying on her lips. "Who's this?"

Taylor grinned as she scooped Penny up and approached her mom and Maggie and Sarah. "Hey, guys. This is . . . this is Penny. She was an early birthday present from Kurt."

"Of course she was," Emma said dryly, her smile belying her tone at this fresh proof of Kurt's love for her daughter. She hugged Taylor fiercely before stepping to the side to allow Maggie and Sarah to greet her as well, all of them taking turns petting the puppy, much to Penny's delight. "She seems like a wonderful dog, Taylor, but isn't she going to get a bit big for an apartment in New York City? Dogs like this need plenty of room to run and play."

"I know," Taylor agreed. "Which is why it's fortunate Kurt and I are buying a house with a nice, big, fenced-in backyard in Staten Island." Her smile turned sheepish at the shock on their faces. "We, uh . . . we weren't planning on doing anything like that on this trip, but we spotted it after we booked a church for our wedding and absolutely fell in love with it. We'll close on it when we go back in a couple weeks."

Sarah was the first to recover, and she squealed as she hugged Taylor again. "That's awesome! I'm so happy for the two of you! I can't wait to see it."

Emma and Maggie congratulated her as well, but Emma would have been less than human if her heart didn't sink a little at this reminder that her daughter's stay here was only temporary and she would be leaving again all too soon. _At least this time, they would be staying in touch better,_ she reminded herself as Taylor took out her phone and began displaying the pictures she had taken of their future home.

"And don't worry, Mom," she teased, sensing what her mother was feeling and sharing some of that same sadness herself. "As you can see, even when we start having those grandchildren you want, the place is more than large enough to accommodate you when you come to visit. Which I hope you'll be doing a lot more often. And Jack is more than welcome to come along as well, if he wants to." She noted with amusement that her mother's cheeks colored at the mention of her boyfriend staying with her. "The basement is basically a mini-apartment and there's also an apartment with a separate entrance above the garage."

"So will you be selling the apartment Kurt bought just before he moved here?" Sarah asked. Surely they would be. That house was clearly not going to come cheap, and the cost of furnishing and maintaining two places in such an expensive city would be prohibitive.

"No." Taylor shook her head. "We talked about it, but since the apartment is already paid for and so much closer to our office, and time is critical in missing-persons' cases, we decided to keep it." It would give them a place to crash when they needed to rest a few hours in the middle of such an investigation. "Plus, we both . . . we both really love the place, so we may sell the house and move back in there after the kids are grown and we retire."

Emma took pity on Sarah and Maggie as they exchanged a look, clearly concerned at the potential strain this would put on Taylor and Kurt's finances. "Don't worry, you two. This isn't going to break the bank for them. Taylor's made some wise investments over the years, so I doubt if this will even put a serious dent in her bank account."

"Wise enough to enable you to pay for this house in cash?" Sarah was incredulous when Taylor nodded. "Wow. I need to have you invest some of my money, then. That would give Sawyer's college fund a huge boost."

"I'd be more than happy to help," Taylor assured her. She grimaced as she thought of the list Liz had compiled for her and Kurt to tackle when she returned to New York. " _After_ the wedding."

Everyone laughed before Maggie asked, "So, what will you do with Penny on the nights you wind up staying at the apartment?"

Taylor frowned. She and Kurt had been discussing that, but they hadn't really come up with a plan that met with their mutual satisfaction yet. He had suggested finding a new neighbor that was a dog lover and having them check in on Penny on those occasions, but she wasn't crazy about a stranger having a key to their house; she had proposed having Liz drop by to care for Penny on her way home, but Kurt had told her that when they were under the gun on a case like that, Liz often stayed late at the office to help as well. "We're still working on that."

"I only asked, because, well . . ." Maggie took a deep breath before making the announcement that she'd been thinking of ever since Tom died. Ever since she'd learned what he'd done. "I've decided I need a fresh start, so I'm going to sell the house and everything in it that you or Kurt don't want, Sarah—or you as well, Taylor—and move to New York to be closer to the three of you and Sawyer. I'd like to do some travelling as well, see more of this country and the world, but if I can find an affordable apartment near your new place, I'd be more than happy to look after Penny for you whenever you need me to."

 _That shouldn't be a problem,_ Taylor thought, secretly thrilled by Maggie's decision but staying out of the fray as her mom and Sarah began loudly protesting it, not wanting to lose a good neighbor and a childhood home, respectively. She pulled out her phone and texted Kurt. _Think I might have found someone to watch Penny for us. Your mom's decided to move to New York. Any objections to offering her the apartment above the garage?_

Her phone buzzed seconds later. _Not as long as she agrees to knock before coming into the house._ He had included a winking, smiley face emoji, and Taylor laughed aloud as his meaning sank in, effectively ending the argument between the other three women. "Sorry. Maggie, if you do decide to go ahead with your move to New York, Kurt and I would love it if you would take the apartment above our garage. I can promise you you'll be able to afford it." In fact, if she had her way, Maggie would live there rent-free, though she knew she would never be able to get her to agree to such a thing. Maybe Kurt would have better luck.

"Oh." Maggie's eyes flooded with tears as she hugged Taylor fiercely. "God, I love you. _Wow._ That apartment is beautiful. _Perfect._ Yes. I accept, if you're sure it won't be any trouble. I know the two of you are going to need a lot of alone time, being newlyweds and all, and having to get to work on making me more grandchildren—" everyone laughed at Taylor's groan as she realized she now had _two_ moms that were going to be ganging up on her on that subject, "—and I promise I won't intrude unless I'm invited."

She turned to Sarah as her daughter opened her mouth to renew her protests. "I know this is a big change for you, Sarah, and I'm sorry it's upsetting to you, but I promise, you can have anything in that house you want. The only things I plan to take are my clothes and toiletries, so feel free to start going through and taking what you want. I plan to put it on the market this week."

Sarah nodded reluctantly. It _would_ be nice to have her mom close by in New York, one she knew she would like much better once she got used to it, but it had always been such a comfort to her to know that her childhood home was always available for her to come back to, just a few hours' drive away. It was going to be a big adjustment. "So, Taylor," she asked to distract herself from the finality of that change, "how are the wedding plans coming along?"

"They had better not be coming _too_ far along," Emma interjected. "I would like to have _some_ input into my only child's big day."

"You will," Taylor assured her, hugging her warmly and laughing as Penny used the opportunity to plant a sloppy kiss on her mom's chin. She set the puppy down as her mother comically attempted to maintain her dignity, struggling to rein in the silent laughter that shook her. "We've booked a church, and set a date for marriage counseling, but that's about it so far. Kurt's promised to help with the plans, and his secretary printed us a list of things that need to be done in order of importance, but I really want your input.

" _All_ of your input," she added, expanding that to include Maggie and Sarah as well. Her entire family. "In fact, I was hoping the three of you could come up to New York one day soon and help me pick out my dress and bridesmaids' dresses. And of course, Sarah, I want you to be my maid of honor."

Sarah's eyes welled with tears as she embraced Taylor. "Of course I will be . . . _sis_. And I'll be heading up about the same time as you guys return to get Sawyer reenrolled in school there, so whenever the two of you can come up-" she turned to her mom and Emma, "—I'll make myself available. And start planning an _epic_ bachelorette party."

Oh, god. She and Tasha were going to be trouble together. Taylor could already see it. "Uh . . . maybe not _too_ epic, Sarah. I do still want Kurt to _want_ to marry me when it's over." She didn't have any doubts that he would go through with it, but she didn't want him to have any doubts _period._

"So that's a no to the male strippers, then?" Sarah asked innocently, and nearly doubled over laughing at the expression on Taylor's face. "Joking, Taylor. I was _joking._ "

Taylor relaxed slightly, willing to give her future sister-in-law the benefit of the doubt, even if she still had misgivings of her own, but before she could attempt to clarify what was and was not acceptable to her at such a party, the doorbell rang. She glanced at her mother in puzzlement. "Were you expecting someone?"

"Just you," Emma replied as she turned toward the door. "Since I knew you were coming home, I kept the day free. Hold on. I'll see if I can get rid of them. I want to talk more about these wedding plans of yours." She hadn't been able to pin Taylor down about what she liked about _anything_ so far, but it sounded as if she was finally ready to get serious. "Just a sec."

Taylor turned back to Sarah, wanting to discuss the idea of this party further, but once again she was interrupted, this time by the sound of her mother's voice raised in fury. "What the hell are _you_ doing here!?

Taylor felt a chill run down her spine as she thrust Penny's leash into Sarah's hands and raced for the entryway, her protective instincts kicking into high gear, but paused in confusion as she recognized the man in the doorway. The very _famous_ man in the doorway. "Mom?" she asked as she reached Emma's side. "What is Ryan Jameson doing on our doorstep?"

"Nothing," Emma spat, glancing at Taylor out of the corner of her eye even as she kept her gaze firmly trained on the man before her. "Mr. . . . Jameson and I used to be friends years ago, but we had a falling out, and I have no interest in renewing the acquaintance. He was just leaving."

Mr. Jameson apparently hadn't gotten the memo. He leaned around her mother and held out a hand to her. "You must be Taylor. It's very nice to meet you. Finally."

Taylor's eyebrows shot up as she casually leaned against the wall and crossed her arms around her middle, ignoring his outstretched hand. He might be one of Hollywood's favorite sons, but he had never impressed her much, and her mother's reaction only cemented that impression. "I can't say the feeling's mutual. How do you know my name, and why do you feel that we're overdue to meet?"

"Because . . ." Ryan hesitated, hoping Emma would field this question, but her face hardened as she glanced away. No help there. "Because I'm your dad, Taylor."

He didn't know what reaction he had been expecting, but it wasn't the scornful laugh Taylor uttered. "No," she contradicted. "You _aren't._ _Dads_ are there to teach their kids to ride a bike, and read them bedtime stories, and walk them to school on their first day. You may be my _biological father,_ but to be honest, I don't give a damn whether you are or not. The days when I wanted to know who you were or anything about you are long past. I don't need anything from you, so as Mom suggested, you should just _leave._ "

He felt an unreasoning surge of pride that she didn't kowtow to him because of his wealth or fame. Not that he had expected any less, given what his investigators had turned up. "But I need something from you," Ryan said quietly. "I know I don't have any right to ask this, but I need a few minutes of your time, Taylor." He was counting on her innate sense of justice to not turn him away.

"You're right," Maggie said, she and Sarah coming up behind Emma and Taylor, "you don't have any right to ask it. She doesn't owe you anything. _Neither_ of them owe you anything." She placed her hands on Taylor's shoulders, Sarah taking up a protective stance next to Emma and wrapping an arm around her waist. "Would you like me to call Kurt for you, dear?"

Taylor reached up and covered one of Maggie's hands with her own. "No . . . thank you, Mom. I'll go see Kurt as soon as we're done here, but for now . . . for now I think I'd like to hear what he has to say.

"If that's . . . if that's okay with you, Mom," she said, looking back at Emma just as Ryan uttered, " _Mom?"_ in a puzzled tone, looking at Maggie in confusion.

"I'm sorry," Ryan said when no one responded. "Where are my manners?" He didn't bother extending his hand again, the women's defensive postures making it clear they would ignore it just as Taylor had. "I'm Ryan Jameson, as I'm sure you know. And you are . . .?" Again, there was no answer, and he glanced from Maggie to Emma. "I couldn't help but notice Taylor called both of you _Mom._ Are the two of you . . ."

"What? _No,_ " Maggie said, horrified, as she realized what he was driving at. Not that there was anything at all wrong with it, it was just shocking to be mistaken for a lesbian when she'd never looked at another woman in her life. Then again, given how things had turned out with Tom, maybe she should have.

"Maggie lives next door, and she's been like a second mom to me all my life," Taylor finally explained, taking pity on her . . . on Jameson when once again, no one bothered to answer him, "and I officially started calling her that when I began dating her son recently."

"Ah," Ryan said as the light began to dawn. "Let me guess. That would be the Kurt that she mentioned."

"He also happens to be the town sheriff," Maggie interposed threateningly, but to her dismay, Jameson merely looked amused.

"Well, in that case, I guess I'll have to be on my best behavior, then." Ryan turned to Emma. "So what's it to be, Emmy? Am I welcome to stay here and talk, or should Taylor and I go someplace else instead?"

 _Over her dead body._ "It seems I don't have any choice," Emma said grudgingly. "I'm not about to let you feed her a pack of lies that I'm not there to set straight. But if you call me Emmy again, I'll punch you in the nose, and I warn you, I pack a wallop."

 _She always had._ The first time he'd seen her he'd thought she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on, her physical beauty only enhanced by an inner goodness, a glow, that time had done nothing to extinguish, and once again he cursed the hubris of youth that had caused him to cast her aside so easily, certain he could find just such another when _he_ was ready to settle down. Of all the women he'd had on his arm since then—women certainly more gorgeous by the world's standards—none had been able to hold a candle to her.

Thankfully, just as his investigators had reported to him, just as he was seeing for himself, Taylor seemed to have inherited those same qualities from her mother in spades. If this Kurt fellow was smart, he would snap her up before another man recognized what a treasure she was and snatched her out from under him. His eyes narrowed as he spotted the emerald-and-diamond engagement ring glinting on her finger as she led the way into the living room. "So . . . he said hesitantly, "you and this Kurt . . . you're engaged?"

That could potentially complicate things. Though how the crack team of investigators he'd paid an exorbitant amount of money to locate and report back to him on his daughter's life as soon as possible could have missed such a crucial detail was beyond him. They'd told him she wasn't even seeing anyone when he'd paid his last visit to them right before the holidays. He was definitely going to be asking for his money back when he returned to LA.

"Yeah," Taylor replied after a considered pause. "He popped the question on Christmas Eve, and we're getting married in a couple months."

That _definitely_ complicated things. The favor he had to ask would never be possible here in this backwoods town. It would be giving them a tiger to hold by the tail. "So you're going to be quitting the FBI and moving here? Are you going into local law enforcement as well?"

Taylor's eyes hardened as she whirled to face her father. "That's funny. I don't recall telling you I worked for the FBI."

"I had you investigated before I came here," Ryan admitted. "A man in my position can't be too careful. I needed to know if—"

"If she was really yours?" Emma supplied with a sweetness that he knew spelled trouble. "Come to think of it, I seem to recall you suggesting she wasn't. In fact, if memory serves, you told me she couldn't possibly be."

Ryan laughed nervously. "Come on, Emmy—Emma," he amended hastily. "You know I didn't mean anything by it. I was just young, and stupid, and not ready for that kind of responsibility. I had my whole career ahead of me, for god's sake."

"And so you decided to make your problem go away by ruining mine," Emma interposed. "By outing me as a cheater to the tabloids and blacklisting me with all the good directors." By the time he'd been done, she'd had no choice but to flee Hollywood, leaving behind both the scandal and her dreams of making it big as an actress.

And taking with her the greatest gift she had ever been given.

 _"_ _What?"_ Taylor's eyes flashed, and Emma laid a calming hand on her arm.

"It's okay, Taylor," she assured her before her daughter could order Ryan to leave. She actually thought it might be good for her to hear whatever he had to say, to lay some of the questions she'd always had to rest. Certainly it was long overdue. "I can't say I won't be happy to see the last of him, but I don't have any hard feelings against him any longer. A part of me will always wonder about that road not taken, but I don't regret a moment of my life here with you. Nothing Hollywood has to offer could have ever compared with the privilege of being your parent, and Ryan is the real loser for turning his back on that. He missed out on knowing an amazing daughter, and I am so proud to be your mom."

Taylor's eyes filled with tears as she hugged her. "And I'm so thankful to be your daughter. But you could have done both. You could have had it all." She _should_ have had it all.

"Don't you get it, Taylor?" Emma told her softly. "I already do. I have regrets, sure, but leaving that life behind is not one of them. And if I hadn't done so, you wouldn't have ever known Kurt. Seeing the two of you so happy together brings me more joy than any amount of awards or acclaim _ever_ could have."

"And I can tell you from personal experience that a career in Hollywood and parenthood don't always mesh so well," Ryan added ruefully. "That's actually why I'm here. But I am sorry, Emma. I know it's too little and far too late, but I want you to know I regret my actions and the pain they caused you. And you as well, Taylor. I should have been there for both of you, and I am truly sorry."

Emma and Taylor both simply nodded, their thoughts at that moment remarkably similar. Ryan certainly appeared sincere, but they had seen him in enough movies to know he was more than capable of faking that emotion. And if he were genuinely sorry, why had he attempted to defend his actions just moments ago? More than likely, he was simply apologizing because he thought it would give him a better chance of getting whatever he had come for.

Which was . . .? "All right," Taylor said at length, taking a seat on the couch across from Jameson, flanked by her mother and Maggie and Sarah. "Say your piece, Jameson, but don't expect me to be too sympathetic to you after what you've done."

"I don't," Ryan assured her quietly. "But I _am_ hoping it will make you more sympathetic to Taryn."

Taylor sucked in a breath as he mentioned the daughter she'd seen mentioned in the tabloids . . . her half-sister, she realized for the first time. Not that it was exactly joyful news. From what she'd seen in the tabloids, Taryn Jameson was . . . well, troubled was the kindest way she could think of putting it, but that was vastly understating the matter. She'd apparently managed to get herself kicked out of nearly every school in the county, even those that were notoriously lenient with celebrities' kids and had been arrested for everything from drinking and smoking pot to stealing her nanny's car and going for a joyride. Without a license. On multiple occasions.

And she was only fifteen.

 _There but for the grace of god,_ Taylor thought as she looked at Jameson. He really did look like a man at his wit's end and she felt an unwilling surge of sympathy for him. Whatever his failings with her, at least he had tried to provide a stable home for Taryn. Unfortunately, again if the tabloids were to be believed, he had compensated for her mother's death of an overdose when she was two years old by giving her all of the material possessions she could want and none of the structure she had needed. "I do feel for her. I'm just not sure what you want from me."

"I was . . . I was hoping that if I could find a boarding school in New York that would take Taryn that you would be willing to spend some time with her," Ryan told her. "Be a mentor, of sorts. My investigators were very thorough in turning up all the things you've accomplished in your life, and I thought . . . I _think_ it might help Taryn to know she has a half-sister who's done so many amazing things."

More than likely, it would only serve to make Taryn resent the hell out of her, Taylor thought, but she kept quiet as she considered the idea. Jameson had been masterful in his proposal; if he had asked her to help Taryn as a favor to _him,_ she would already be showing him the door, but presenting his request as a last-ditch effort to help a troubled girl made it much more difficult for her to refuse. His investigators had certainly done their job well. Whatever he had paid them wasn't enough.

"But of course, now that you're moving to Clearfield, obviously that won't work," Ryan continued. "A public school here would never be an option for Taryn. She wouldn't last a day, and I'm afraid she would have the whole town up in arms before a week was out. I apologize for wasting your time—"

"Hold on," Taylor said sharply as he started to rise. "Kurt is only temporarily the sheriff here. We have our own private investigative business in New York, and we're actually moving back there in a couple weeks."

Ryan leaned forward eagerly. "So are you saying you'll do it then?"

"Taylor," Emma said softly in a warning tone, not wanting her daughter to get sucked into a battle that wasn't hers and that she couldn't win. Not wanting her to be hurt by Ryan as she had been. He was who he was—a charmingly irresponsible rogue—and he was never going to change.

Taylor was silent for a long moment. The warning in her mother's voice lined up with her own misgivings, but all of that paled in comparison to the look she'd seen in Taryn's eyes in the tabloid photo of her last photo. It was a look she recognized all too well, and one she knew she'd worn herself once.

The look of a lost little girl searching for her place in the world.

"I'll think about it," she said abruptly. Jameson's look turned triumphant, and she had the urge to wipe that smug expression off his face. She wasn't doing this for _him,_ after all. "I'll have to discuss it with Kurt, of course. If he doesn't want me to do it, then I will respect his decision." And given how she wanted to modify the terms of Jameson's proposal, she thought that refusal was more than just likely. And completely understandable. She stood, and Jameson rose as well. "Do you have a number where I can reach you?"

"Of course." Ryan pulled a card with his personal cell phone number from his pocket and handed it to her. "I was hoping you would be able to come to a decision sooner rather than later, so I booked a room at the bed-and breakfast just outside town for a couple days in case you had any further questions. Even if you don't, feel free to come by. I'd love to see you again and meet your young man."

Oh, he could count on that. Taylor had a feeling Kurt would be hotfooting it out there for a man-to-man chat with him as soon as he learned Jameson was in his jurisdiction. And she had no intention of stopping him. She hid her smile as Maggie snorted and did her best to cover it up with a cough. "I'm sure we'll do that," she replied in the same sweet tone that Emma had used earlier. Unfortunately—or fortunately, depending on how you looked at it—Ryan didn't have the history with her to realize that it signified tenfold more trouble than Emma had ever rained down upon his head.

He beamed at her as they said their goodbyes and he took his leave, certain he had won and that his troubles with his wayward daughter would soon be a thing of the past. And they might be, Taylor mused, but his troubles with his upstanding daughter were just beginning.

She took a deep breath as she returned to the living room and found her mother and Maggie and Sarah staring at her in dismay. "I know," she said. "But what was I supposed to do? She's my _half-sister._ Everyone else may have turned their backs on her or given up on her, but I can't. You taught me better than that, all of you, when you welcomed me back here with open arms even when you had every reason in the world to despise me."

"That's debatable," Maggie told her, "but your actions today only made me prouder that I can call you my daughter. But you do realize that Kurt is going to go ballistic when he hears about this?"

"I know," Taylor agreed. As much as he loved her and her mother, she would be very much surprised if Jameson left town without at least one highly visible bruise on that pretty face of his. She sighed as the emotions of the past hour finally began to catch up with her and she was suddenly very anxious to feel his arms around her once more, the reassurance that though her father may not have ever loved her, he _did._ "I'm going to go to the station and talk to him now.

"Mom—" she turned to Emma, kissing her cheek to try to alleviate the frown lines that had gathered on her forehead. "I know this has been upsetting, but try not to worry so much about me, okay? I have you and Kurt and Maggie and Sarah now. I couldn't ask for a better support system than that, and whatever decision Kurt and I come to, I can guarantee we won't be making it without sitting down with all of you and asking for your input and insights."

Emma nodded tearily as she hugged her daughter, sensing just how much she wanted—needed—to see Kurt right now. "Oh, go on with you. I'll keep Penny until you get back." She smiled as Taylor was out the door before she had even finished uttering the words.

Taylor drove well over the speed limit the entire way to the station.


	26. Chapter Twenty-Five

I do not own Blindspot or its characters.

* * *

Taylor ignored the curious stares and the commands for her to stop as she stormed past the help desk and strode through the bullpen toward the back of the building where Kurt's office was located. Her emotions were raw at the moment, and she wasn't about to take the time to try to explain to the desk officer who she was and why she wanted to see Kurt; she needed that hug, and she needed it now.

She bypassed his secretary's desk as well, disregarding the woman's, "Stop! You can't go in there right now! He's in a meeting!", and barged right on in. Kurt was seated behind his desk talking to Ben, but he stood up when she entered, confusion and then concern etching itself on his face at the look on hers in the split second before she launched herself at him. His strong arms automatically wrapped themselves around her, and she drew in a shuddering breath, relishing the solid warmth he offered as she buried her face in his shoulder.

Kurt glanced at Ben, and the man nodded. "It's okay, Martha," he assured the woman as he steered her out of the office, closing the blinds before he exited and pulling the door shut behind them to give the two some privacy. Officers had gathered around Martha's desk, unsure what was happening, and he smiled at them. "Nothing to worry about, folks," he said reassuringly. "Kurt's fiancée just needed to talk to him." Urgently, apparently. He hoped everything was okay.

So did Kurt. Every attempt he had made to pull back to talk to Taylor, to find out what was wrong, had been met with resistance, so he eventually hoisted her up and carried her over to the seat Ben had just vacated, cradling her head against his heart as he sat and stroking her back for long minutes as her body shook with silent sobs.

"S-sorry," Taylor apologized when she was finally calm enough to ease back enough to meet his eyes, her cheeks damp, realizing she had soaked his shirt with the tears she hadn't even known she was on the verge of shedding.

"You don't ever need to apologize for coming to me when something's bothering you, Tee," Kurt told her tenderly as he brought his hands up to cup her jaw, gently swiping at her tears with his thumbs. He didn't want her hurting and hiding it. Though he was more than a little concerned at what had prompted such a reaction. He doubted she'd cried that much in her entire life. "Ready to tell me what's wrong?"

"My . . . my father's in town," Taylor finally managed to say, smiling a little as Kurt's grip tightened on her protectively. "He showed up on my mom's doorstep unexpectedly a little while ago wanting to talk to me."

He wished he had been there. He would have showed the man the door—and maybe rammed him into it on his way out. He had been itching to plant his fist in that man's face since Taylor was small. Looked like he was about to have his chance.

"It's funny," Taylor continued before he could respond, "when I was a kid, I used to dream about him realizing what he was missing out on and showing up like this one day, but I never imagined it would upset me so much." The emotions had hit her hard on the drive over here. She smiled wryly at Kurt. "Suffice it to say the reality definitely didn't live up to the fantasy."

One more thing to add to the man's account, then. Kurt gently kissed her forehead. "I'm sorry, Tee." He shifted her to a more comfortable position on his lap. "Tell me about his visit. Who is he? What does he want? And why did he pick now to show up?"

All good questions. Too bad the answers weren't as simple to give as they were to ask. Taylor slid off Kurt's lap and perched on the edge of the desk opposite him, wanting to see his face as she broke this news. "You remember that movie you took me to on our second date?" she asked. "The one starring Ryan Jameson as the clueless dad who thought his daughter was a perfect angel when in reality she was up to all sorts of shenanigans behind his back?"

"Kind of," Kurt admitted. He remembered thinking that they had cast the perfect person in that role, but he had been more focused on Taylor and how many shenanigans of his own he could get up to with her in the darkened theater to pay much attention to the film.

"Well . . ." Taylor drawled. "Turns out he's just as bad at parenthood in real life."

Kurt snorted. "Tell me something I didn't know. That daughter of his is a hot mess—" He broke off abruptly as Taylor's eyes began twinkling. "No!"

"Afraid so," Taylor confirmed.

"Your . . . your father is Ryan Jameson? _The_ Ryan Jameson?" Kurt knew Taylor wouldn't joke about something this serious, but it was almost more than he could process as she nodded. Still, now that he thought about it, the resemblance was undeniable. She definitely had Jameson's eyes and smile, though hers was real, whereas his had always struck Kurt as a little too practiced to be genuine.

"Wow. That is . . . not what I was expecting." As unflattering as it was to Emma and her taste in men, he'd always pictured Taylor's father as a deadbeat, a loser who didn't know a good thing when he had it and who had probably never amounted to anything in his life, not a charming, charismatic, good-looking man with the whole world at his fingertips. "So. Why is he here?"

"He wants me to be a mentor to Taryn," Taylor told him. She laughed softly, shaking her head. "I gather he's pretty much at the end of the rope, to seek me out. He's offering to send Taryn to a boarding school in New York if I'd be willing to spend some time with her. Apparently, he thinks I can be a good influence on her."

"You would be, Tee," Kurt assured her instantly, even as he shook his head at the effrontery, the sheer gall of the man in asking the daughter he'd tossed away like trash for help with the one he'd kept. "What did you say?" As if he didn't already know. Taylor wouldn't have lifted a finger to help her father, but she was far too tenderhearted to turn her back on a little sister in need, even one who was a stranger to her. Jameson couldn't have found a more perfect excuse to invade her life again if he'd tried.

Fortunately, Kurt would be there to keep an eye on him this time.

"I told him I'd think about it." Taylor stood up and walked toward Kurt. "That I'd talk to you about it." She slid back onto his lap. "And that if you said no, there would be no further discussion on the matter." She wound her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulder. "Because as a former boarding school student myself, I don't think that's a good option for a girl like Taryn. I think to have any chance of getting through to her, she would need . . . she would need to come live with us."

Kurt sucked in a breath. "What did Jameson say to that?" His opinion on the matter defied description, but he would wait to voice it until he had all the facts.

Taylor slid off his lap and shifted to the chair beside his, registering the shift in his tone and wanting to be able to see his face as they discussed this. She shook her head. "I didn't mention it to him. I wanted to talk to you about it first, and I thought it would be better if we sprang it on him together if we decided to go that route."

"I appreciate that, Tee." Kurt reached for her hand and threaded his fingers through hers as he attempted to order his thoughts. "And I want you to help Taryn; I do. But I'd be lying if I didn't admit to having serious reservations about her coming to live with us."

Taylor nodded. "I know that it would be a lot to take on right now, what with adjusting to the new partnership at work and planning the wedding, and of course, as newlyweds, I know we'll want a lot of alone time, so—"

"All of those are valid reasons," Kurt interrupted, leaning over to kiss her lingeringly on the lips, "but they don't even begin to approach my main concerns. We're private investigators, Tee. Have you considered what it will do to our business if your connection to Jameson becomes known? How are we supposed to conduct a discreet investigation if we're being followed around by tabloid photographers wanting the most unflattering shots they can get of Jameson's long-lost love child?"

She opened her mouth to speak, but he laid a finger across her lips to silence her. "I realize that's a petty concern when the future of a child is at stake, and if it were the only potential problem, we could certainly ride it out, but it's not just our professional reputation that could be at stake. Given Taryn's high-profile status and penchant for pulling headline-grabbing stunts, it's our personal ones as well. What if her next attempt to garner daddy's attention is by accusing you of abuse? Or me of taking an inappropriate interest in her? It won't matter that those accusations are eventually proved to be baseless; there will always be a question mark in people's minds as to whether we got away with it. And how many people do you think will trust us to help their at-risk children then?"

Taylor sucked in a breath, and he was relieved to see that the potential pitfalls of such an arrangement were beginning to sink in with her. "We don't know this girl, Tee; we don't know where she'll draw the line, or if she even knows there is one. The one thing we do know for certain is that Jameson is absolutely untrustworthy; I don't believe he'll hesitate for a second to throw any of us, or all of us, under the bus, if the situation warrants it in his mind. And he has the power of the press behind him."

Of course he did. And he'd certainly used it against her mother. Against _her_ , in a way. "You're right," Taylor said in a small voice as she relayed what he'd done to Emma.

Kurt leaped to his feet as the fury surging through him could not be contained, taking several deep breaths in an attempt to calm himself as he paced back and forth, feeling Taylor's eyes on him all the while in wordless sympathy and concern. "I really, _really_ want to punch that guy," he admitted. "After seeing all he's put you through, and now knowing what he did to Mom . . ." He shook his head. "I'd like to run him out of town on a rail."

Taylor laughed a little. "I felt the same way when I heard. I think I would have, too, if Mom hadn't stopped me. But honestly, Kurt . . . he's not worth it." She rose and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she smiled up at him. "His actions did have one very, _very_ big silver lining though."

"Oh, yeah?" Kurt matched her playful tone. "What's that?" The answer occurred to him even as he asked the question.

"Well . . ." Taylor's smile disappeared as she gazed up into blue eyes that held the tender look he reserved just for her, turning serious once more. "If he hadn't created such a scandal that Mom felt she needed to get out of California, she never would have moved clear across the country to Clearfield, Pennsylvania . . . and I never would have grown up beside this amazing boy I've grown to love with all my heart."

"That boy feels exactly the same way about you, Tee," Kurt told her, pulling her in close so he could cradle her head to his heart, and tilting his own head down to breathe in her scent. "Even if he's not exactly a _boy_ any longer." He rocked his hips lightly into hers to emphasize his point.

"Mmm," Taylor agreed. He had certainly proved that memorably last night. And on every other occasion when he'd had the opportunity. "And I am very . . . _very_ . . . glad of that." Her eyes glistened as she moved her head to his shoulder so she could look up at him. "So . . . what do we do now, Kurt?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I think maybe . . . maybe we should sit down with our moms and Sarah, and see what they think of this plan of yours. Especially your mom. This will affect her the most if the media gets wind of this. She may not want to risk the past being dredged up that way." Truthfully, he was more than a little concerned about the potential effects of this on her. Emma had been happier lately than he'd ever seen her, more at peace, and they would need to be sure that whatever decision they came to didn't take that away from her.

Taylor nodded. "I already promised we wouldn't make a decision without talking to them first. So, uh . . ." Her expression turned sheepish. "I guess I should let you get back to work, so you can get home sooner so we can do that, huh? Your officers probably think I'm nuts," she added.

"Nah," Kurt reassured her. "I'm sure Ben took care of it. Besides . . ." he grinned at her, "while we were away, they got a real taste of crazy. Some guy got high and decided it would be a good idea to take a bath in the town fountain. It took five officers to subdue him. So trust me, your rushing in here would not have fazed them too badly."

"Good to know," Taylor said dryly. "So . . . I'll see you at dinner, then? Penny's at my mom's, so do you want me to pick something up so we can eat there tonight and discuss this? I can invite Maggie and Sarah and Sawyer over as well. I'm sure Penny will distract Sawyer while we're talking."

Kurt shook his head. "I'm game for dinner with the family if you want, but I'm coming with you. I think for all our sakes, the sooner we have this settled, the better." He pulled on his coat, ignoring her half-hearted protests, and ushered her out the door. "Martha," he said to his secretary as she glanced at him curiously, "I'm going to be out the rest of the day. Family emergency."

"You don't have to do this," Taylor said softly as he walked her to her vehicle, opting to ride with her and have her drop him back off in the morning. "I know you probably still have a lot to catch up on. This will keep for a few hours."

Kurt's eyes crinkled as he glanced over at her. "Trying to get rid of me, Tee?" He grinned at her hasty denial. "Honestly, Ben and I had just been shooting the breeze for the last half hour before you arrived. He did such a good job that there were only a few papers that needed my signature. I was ready to head home anyway." He hesitated. "I wish you had called me." He would have broken every speed limit he was hired to enforce getting there to be there for her. For _them._

"I should have," Taylor admitted. "Maggie wanted to. But I . . . I guess I was just so shocked at his appearance that I wasn't thinking straight. One minute we were making plans to go wedding dress shopping, and the next . . . I'm sorry, Kurt." Leaning on him was still a lesson she was working on learning. She'd been independent for a very long time. "I'll do better next time; I promise."

"I know, Tee," Kurt assured her, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "I'm just glad you came to me right afterwards." She might think she had failed, but that was a very big step in the right direction. Whatever life threw at them, at least he could see that she was going to turn to him to get through it rather than run away again. He knew that fear was unfair, given what she had gone through, but there were still days when he awoke terrified that the last few weeks had been nothing more than a dream that was about to be cruelly snatched away from him. When he laid awake at night just watching her breathe because he was afraid if he closed his eyes, she wouldn't be there when he awoke.

One more thing he should talk to Borden about, he supposed. But for now, they had to get through this one. He shook his head slightly as his mom and sister came rushing out onto the porch as they pulled up. He should have known they would still be here. "Something tells me my mom's going to be looking for a new favorite actor." As much as she'd liked Jameson, he knew she wouldn't ever pay money to see him again.

And he loved her all the more for it.

Kurt hugged her fiercely as they walked up on the porch. "I hear you're going to be our next-door neighbor in New York. I'm so glad you're moving closer to us, Mom."

"Not just your next-door neighbor," Maggie corrected. "Your tenant." She looked pointedly from Kurt to Taylor. "Your _paying_ tenant. And don't think I don't expect you to charge me a fair market value for it." Kurt opened his mouth to comment, and she shot him a look that quickly had him closing it with a snap. "I don't want to hear any argument from either one of you."

"No arguments," Taylor agreed sweetly. "However, we will have to knock the price down for any dog-watching or babysitting services you provide. It wouldn't be fair to ask you to work for free."

Kurt chuckled at Maggie's exasperated look. "She's got you there, Mom." He, like Taylor, would like to see her live there free of charge, but he understood why she felt she couldn't accept that. And knowing her, she would just spend the money they discounted her on rent on them anyway.

He draped an arm around Sarah's shoulders as they followed Taylor and their mom into the house. "Hey, sis. How are you doing with this news?" he asked softly. He knew she loved change about as much as she would getting a tooth pulled without anesthetic. And how much their childhood home meant to her.

"It still hasn't sunk in yet," Sarah admitted. "I never thought I'd say this, but to be honest, I was thankful that Taylor's father showed up and provided a distraction. Especially since . . . well, _Ryan Jameson._ Wow."

Kurt shrugged. "He still puts his pants on one leg at a time like we do, Sarah." He'd never understood the general public's need to idolize celebrities simply because they could act, or sing, or . . . whatever. They were still people like everyone else. And many of them, like Jameson, seemed to feel that their talent entitled them to ignore the basic standards of morality that the rest of the population who ultimately paid their salary abided by.

Sarah laughed. "So I guess you're not going to vote for him for father-in-law of the year?"

Kurt just shook his head at her. Jameson would have to be a _father_ first, but as far as he could tell, the man had been nothing more than a sperm donor—to Taylor and to Taryn. He forced the thought aside. "You know it's going to be a good change, right? How many times have we said we wished we all still lived in the same _state_ , and now we're going to be in the same _city?_ "

Not all of them. Sarah kept the smile on her face through sheer force of will. Kurt had meant his words to be encouraging, and they were, for the most part, but unlike the rest of them, she still missed her dad. Still half-expected to see him every time she walked through the door of their childhood home. A home she wouldn't have for much longer. "I know. It's going to take some getting used to, but it's going to be great. And I know I should have said this before, but I'm thrilled for you, big brother. Seeing you so happy . . . knowing you've finally got the future you always wanted . . . I don't know anyone who deserves it more."

"Thanks, Sarah." Kurt heard the happiness for him in her tone, but also the envy that he had found that special someone and she was still single, and he squeezed her shoulder as they walked into the living room. "I'm sure you'll find the right person soon too, and when you do, I'm going to make sure he knows what a lucky guy he is." Her eyes teared up, and he couldn't resist teasing, "Especially since you come with a built-in diet plan."

"Oh, you." Sarah slugged him lightly in the arm. "My cooking is _not_ that bad."

"So," Maggie asked, hoping to distract them before the conversation degenerated into a comparison of their culinary skills (which she would be tasked to be the judge of, and which Kurt would win hands down), "what did the two of you decide to do about Taryn?"

Kurt and Taylor glanced at each other before looking back at the others. "That's what we're here to talk to all of you about." He pulled Emma into a quick hug, shaking his head slightly. "Ryan Jameson, really? No offense, but how on earth did you end up with him?"

"I was young and stupid," Emma replied promptly. She smiled at Taylor, wrapping her free arm around her daughter. "But in my defense, it was the best mistake of my life."

"One we're all very glad you made," Maggie agreed, giving Taylor a quick hug as well as they all took their seats. "Now . . . about Taryn?"

Taylor took the lead, explaining her idea and why she felt it was necessary, and then Kurt chimed in with his previously expressed reservations. "Obviously, we want to do everything in our power to help Taryn," he concluded. "We're just not sure of the best way to go about it."

Maggie and Sarah looked at one another, clearly concerned as well, but uncertain what insights they could offer that Kurt and Taylor hadn't already considered. All eyes turned to Emma.

"Well, you've certainly raised some valid concerns," she began. "And obviously, where Jameson is concerned, you're right on the money. But as for Taryn . . . I think you're selling her short. As you might imagine, I've kept a close eye on her over the years, and I can tell you that she was raised by a live-in nanny that I feel certain instilled a sense of right and wrong in her. Her behavior these days is deplorable, certainly, but I feel it's largely a cry for Ryan's attention, which, unfortunately, she is not going to get any more than she already has. But I've noticed that she never involves anyone else in these stunts she pulls. I feel certain that some of her so-called friends have been involved with, if not instigators of, several of the recent incidents in the tabloids, but she's taken all the blame. In my opinion, she goes out of her way to make sure no one is hurt by it but herself, and I don't believe she would ever falsely accuse you of a crime. But of course, I don't know her, so that's pure supposition."

She turned to Taylor. "That said, you don't have an easy road ahead of you if you choose to take this on, so you need to think carefully before you decide how to proceed. Taryn's had enough people in and out of her life for all the wrong reasons; the last thing she needs is someone else who professes to care about her quitting on her. And make no mistake, you _will_ want to quit."

"What about you?" Kurt asked Emma as Taylor nodded silently, processing her mother's words. "How will you handle it if this does come out in the press?"

Emma smiled faintly. "Better than either of you, I suspect. I made peace with that past a long time ago, and I know I have great things to look forward to in the future. I've finally found a man I can see myself spending the rest of my life with; I have a good relationship with my daughter again, not to mention a fantastic future son-in-law, who, by the way, I expect to provide me with grandchildren in the not-too-distant future. Much as I wish it was the opposite, for your sakes, I'm old news; Taylor will be the hot topic."

She hesitated. "I'd take Taryn myself if Jameson was agreeable, and I thought I could reach her. But as her only other living blood relative, I suspect Taylor may be the only one who can." Taryn was searching for a connection with someone, and Taylor was the only one who fit that bill. Besides Jameson, of course, but he'd already shown he was unwilling to make the effort.

"I want to do it anyway," Taylor said quietly, determinedly. "I know it's a lot more to take on, at the worst possible time, but I . . . I see myself in Taryn. Even before today, before I knew we were related, every time I've looked at those pictures of her in the tabloids, I've been struck by the same thing: the look in her eyes is the exact same one I saw every time I looked in the mirror all those years I had none of you. I know what that kind of loneliness and despair feels like, but even so, I had a mom that I knew loved me, and friends who liked me for me. Taryn has none of that."

"She does now," Maggie said softly, her eyes shining with tears. "She has you, and by extension, all of us. And we'll just love her until she sees that we're not doing it for fame or money or any other reason than that we care about her. And if we have to face a little press scrutiny to do that, then so be it. Jameson is the only one with something to be ashamed of, anyway."

"Agreed," Kurt said quietly, giving Taylor's hand a squeeze to let her know he was firmly behind her, and Sarah chimed in with her assent as well. "So, since, we're all in agreement, I suppose we should go let Jameson know what we've decided."

"Actually," Emma interrupted, "I have a few more thoughts about how you should go about that." She hesitated, and they nodded for her to continue. "This may seem a little radical, but here's what I think you should do . . ."


End file.
